RTÉ sport has secured multi-platform broadcast rights to the UEFA Euro 2016 Finals taking place in France next year.
The coverage will include HD television, radio, online and mobile with technical delivery through the European Broadcasting Union agreement that covers free-to-air platforms across 26 countries.
Next year’s Championships will see an extended tournament expanded from 16 to 24 teams and from 31 to 51 matches. It is still to be hoped that the Republic of Ireland will be one of those teams but it will certainly have familiar faces with each of England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland all in the hunt. BBC and UTV will also have rights to cover games.
It is often considered a given that RTÉ will be there for the big events such as Olympics, World Cups and European Championships but just because it always has been never means it can be taken for granted.
It still requires careful budgeting and management, especially in a summer when the regular All Ireland Championship coverage will be bolstered by coverage later in the summer of the Rio 2016 Olympics.
Credit then to Ryle Nugent and his team for ensuring that sport stays a central part of the stations output.
McDonalds, Coca Cola, Carlsberg, Continental Tyres and Adidas are among the confirmed tournament sponsors who will likely feature around the broadcast coverage as well. Most are already active partners within Irish sport.
“We are delighted to confirm that RTÉ has added the EURO 2016 finals to an already substantial schedule of major Irish and international sports events for 2016,” said RTÉ Group Head of Sport Ryle Nugent.
“Next year Irish audiences can look forward to EURO 2016 alongside the GAA Championships, the Olympic Games in Rio, the 6 Nations and all of Ireland’s competitive qualifiers for both Euro 2016 and the World Cup in 2018 and much more – all free-to-air on RTÉ across all platforms.”
