The Scottish Professional Football League’s (SPFL) proposed new UK£29.5 million-a-season ($53.2 million AUD) domestic broadcast partnership with Sky Sports is reportedly in doubt after Rangers failed to lend their support to the deal.
Sky has been the sole broadcaster of the Scottish top-flight since the start of the 2020/21 season, having previously shared the rights with BT Sport. The SPFL’s current deal is worth UK£26 million ($46.8 million AUD) a year for up to 48 games a year that lasts until 2025.
Under the terms of the new proposal, Sky would be allowed to show up to 60 matches a season, and obliged to show at least 42, with the option of adding another 10 matches a year at a cost of $6.8 million AUD. Clubs would also be permitted to offer up to five matches on a pay-per-view basis if they have not been selected by Sky.
The Daily Mail reported that all 12 Scottish Premiership Clubs were asked to vote on the deal and to give permission for Sky to increase the number of home games they show from each stadium from four to five. While all other 11 top-flight teams did so, Rangers did not submit a response and the SPFL resolution collapsed.
Rangers are involved in a separate dispute involving the Premiership’s title sponsorship with Cinch but it is also believed the club believe the SPFL could secure a more lucrative deal than the one on the table.
It is now believed the SPFL will hold an emergency meeting to decide how to proceed and whether the deal can be approved by a majority of clubs rather than unanimously.
The SPFL’s current TV deal has critics among those who believe it does not reflect the true value of Scottish football, especially when compared to other European leagues of similar stature. Equally, others are frustrated by the fact that Sky does not broadcast all of the games it is entitled to each season, denying fans of some clubs the opportunity to see their team on TV.
This extension has also attracted criticism, with some commentators believing the SPFL should seek to benefit from increasing competition from streaming services. BT Sport has merged with Discovery, Viaplay has acquired Premier Sports, and DAZN and Amazon are on the lookout for opportunistic deals.
Rangers have been one of the clubs to have criticised the regime and a separate Deloitte report was commissioned by five SPFL clubs in total – additionally Aberdeen, Dundee United, Hearts and Hibernian suggested the SPFL should be targeting closer to UK£50 million ($85.1 million AUD) a year. However, all five have reportedly acquiesced to the SPFL’s proposal, binding them into a contract until 2029.
