The sale of BT Sport to streaming giant DAZN has moved a step closer, according to reports.
Last month the news agency Reuters reported that a £583m deal was in the offing for the sale of the BT Sport business and its 52 Premier League matches a season, of which Everton and Liverpool are regular features.
Now, according to a report in The Times, the deal has moved even closer to completion with BT Sport contacting the Premier League to seek its approval for the sale.
Should the takeover happen, DAZN, who made their name in boxing, would acquire the rights to the Premier League games which BT Sport paid £385m for during the 2019 to 2022 cycle, a sum that was rolled over on the same fee for the next three years when the rights were secured for the next cycle last year.
DAZN would also acquire the other competitions which BT Sport paid big money for, including the Champions League and Europa League.
The report states that the sale of BT Sport will be the main item of discussion when the main BT board meets ahead of the announcement of their third quarter results.
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BT have been looking to sell off the BT Sport part of their business for some time. The channel was launched in 2013 and a large amount of money was spent on making it a major player and acquiring the Premier League rights alongside Sky TV and Amazon Prime Video, the latter arriving later in the market.
The Premier League, who have secured record rights domestically and internationally of over £10bn across the next six years, would need to approve the sale, as would UEFA given that BT Sport hold the British rights to the Champions League, Europa League and Europa Conference League.
Everton have featured three times on BT Sport this season and will appear for a fourth time when they visit Newcastle United next week.
Liverpool have appeared 10 times by virtue of their Champions League games being screened on the platform, and they will make it 11 when they take on Leicester City next week in front of the BT Sport cameras.
Any deal struck wouldn't diminish the value of the original TV deal that was struck with the Premier League or the money that would be due to the clubs.
What would happen to those with existing BT Sport subscriptions should the DAZN deal be approved has not yet been made clear.
David Powell, Executive Director of Insights & Analytics EMEA at Landor & Fitch, said: "DAZN’s acquisition of BT Sport could be a win-win for both sides. For BT, it’s an opportunity to streamline its architecture and focus on what it does best: technology innovation. For DAZN, it’s an opportunity to show the world it really means business.
"However, sports broadcasting is one of today’s most competitive markets; DAZN is not just competing against other players in the sports category, but against some of the world’s most powerful brands, including Amazon, BBC and Sky. But by bringing an alternative platform, where customers can view sport their way, DAZN could very well set a new benchmark for the future of the industry."
