Potential broadcast sponsors and those who wish to advertise within matches at the Euro 2016 finals are finally this morning looking at the kinds of packages that are on offer.
For most though it is still a case of look, don’t touch as there is a 30 day exclusive negotiation period for those who are on board as main partners of UEFA.
As Sport for Business revealed two weeks ago these companies include Carlsberg, Coca Cola and Continental Tyres, all of whom are strong advertisers within the Irish market, as well as Adidas, Turkish Airlines and Kia Motors.
The last named could well turn out to be the winner with the tournament taking place across the 162 buying period at a time when car sales are increasing and auto sponsorship within sport is also on the rise.
Parent company Hyundai sponsored the 2014 Fifa World Cup on RTE and it is understood that Kia has already snapped up a number of broadcast sponsorships around Europe for the Euros.
It was confirmed yesterday that there will be two packages on offer for brands this summer with RTE confirming the sub licence agreement that had been an open secret.
TV3 will carry 22 of the games to be played, 21 of them exclusively including two quarter finals and Northern Ireland’s match against Ukraine.
Join us later today when we reveal what the new Republic of Ireland Umbra Kit for the Championships will look like…
RTE wil still retain the lions share of matches including all three of the Republic of Ireland games in the group stage against Sweden, Belgium and Italy.
The advertising packages on RTE will cost over €120,000 for 8 30 second spots in and around the main matches of the tournament. An individual ad of 30 seconds will cost €30,000 to broadcast during an Ireland match or a rate card €20,000 during the final, that is unless of course Martin O’Neill’s side make it all the way to Paris on July 10th.
The deal to share coverage is not unusual in that it is common across Europe. BBC and ITV have long shared coverage of major finals in the UK. Coverage has to be free to air, for now, though who knows whether that will still be the case in four years time when the tournament finals come to Dublin for four matches.
It may be that Sky or BT Sport will have permission to bid, it may be that UEFA will become it’s own broadcaster, charging per game through a variety of possibly yet unimagined streaming channels.
For now though Irish fans will get the best of coverage and the ability to see every minute of the games without it necessarily breaking the bank at RTE.
Listen back to Rob Hartnett from Sport for Business discuss the new broadcast deal with Matt Cooper on last night’s Last Word on Today FM
“In an increasingly competitive and high cost sports rights market, RTÉ has sought a solution to secure and deliver sport to the Irish audience,” said RTÉ Group Head of Sport Ryle Nugent.
“2016 is a huge year for Irish sport with the 6 Nations, GAA Championships, Olympics, Paralympics, European Athletic Championships and the FIFA World Cup qualifiers.”
“This year’s European Soccer Championship Finals is the biggest ever, with an additional 20 matches in comparison to 2012. RTÉ is delighted to partner with TV3, another Irish broadcaster, to ensure that the UEFA Euro 2016 Finals are delivered to Irish audiences free-to-air”.
“We are very happy to be collaborating with our old rivals in RTÉ this summer,” added TV3 Group Managing Director Pat Kiely, “and I am personally very happy to be announcing the start of what is a new era in Irish sports broadcasting.
“We are grateful to everyone who has made it possible including UEFA, with whom we work so well on Champions’ League and our colleagues in RTÉ.”
“This deal further demonstrates TV3’s commitment under our new owners Virgin Media to bring the very best live sport to Irish viewers. We are very much looking forward to being part of UEFA’s football family for Euro 2016”.
The Arrival of Virgin Media on the shareholder list of TV3 has heralded a winning of the rights to the RBS 6 Nations from 2018 and now this sharing of the Euro’s. An interest in taking some of the matches from the GAA Championship will be next on the checklist to their becoming a major player in sports broadcasting. Whether they succeed in that against strong competition from RTE and Sky will be hammered out over the coming months.
