The biggest game in world club soccer, just got bigger. The Google owned online video platform YouTube, reached a deal with BT Sport to live stream the UEFA Champions League Final on May 28th and the Europa League finals on May 18th, for free.
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BT Sport recently reported poor viewing numbers on its paid service, and it has confirmed that both the UEFA Champions League and Europa League finals will be streamed on the network’s YoutTube channels. The Europa League final will feature Liverpool vs Sevilla on may 18th, while the Champions League Final will be a repeat of 2014’s final between Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid.
BT Sport had paid $1.3 billon for the rights to broadcast Champions League games for the 2015-16 season as well as three years after that. However, the pay-TV service BT Sport adopted was not yielding the desired results. Viewership dropped from 4.4 million on the previous carrier ITV, to just 200,000 on BT.
The network hopes that this tactic will enable it to widen its reach and entice soccer fans to subscribe to their Pay TV system: “By doing so, it will bring the matches within reach of millions of additional fans who do not yet subscribe to BT Sport,” the company said in a statement.
John Petter, chief executive of BT Consumer also explained why BT has taken this unprecedented step, saying: “We’ve always said we wanted to give top quality sport back to the people, and making the UEFA Champions League and Europa League finals free to everyone in the UK does this in a big way.”
This partnership confirms a growing trend of live streaming sports on digital platforms, which includes YouTube which features NBA and NFL content on its Google preferred ad inventory. Competition among digital platforms seems be growing however, as Twitter has partnered with the NFL to stream 10 Thursday Night Football games for the 2016-17 season. Furthermore, Snapchat recently signed a deal with NBC Universal to broadcast exclusive Olympic coverage from Rio in the summer. NBC Sports already provides Premier League fans with the ability to stream all games online through its app, in the US, provided the consumer already has a cable connection. Business Insider compiled a great report on the growth of mobile video and how the fan experience is changing.
There is no denying that the viewing experience is rapidly evolving. Millennials are redefining how fans consume entertainment online. TV rights still represent one of the biggest revenue sources for any major sport, but with the constant evolution of online digital platforms and their growing reach, it looks as if TV channels will have to find new ways to remain relevant. Until then, we certainly look forward to watching the Champions League final YouTube.