New broadcasting deal will boost Scottish game, says Neil Doncaster
Last updated 19th Nov 2018
A series of new broadcasting deals from the 2020/21 season will significantly boost revenue in Scottish football, according to the SPFL.
As part of the new deal, Sky Sports are set to exclusively broadcast up to 48 Ladbrokes Premiership matches live every season in addition to screening up to six Premiership and Championship play-off matches for five seasons from 2020/21.
BT, who are currently part of a joint deal with Sky, have also lost rights to the Betfred Cup matches, which will be shown by Premier Sports.
According to reports, the deal with Sky and BT was believed to be worth just under £20million a year. Recent reports claimed this new league deal would be worth about £30m a year.
The SPFL have also extended their current deal with BBC Scotland for television highlights and live radio coverage while BBC ALBA are set to broadcast a deferred Ladbrokes Premiership game every Saturday night as well as live matches from the IRN-BRU Cup and play-off finals.
SPFL chief executive Neil Doncaster said in a statement: "Every single deal is a major increase on our current contracts.
"Taken together, these deals represent the largest ever injection of broadcast investment since the SPL was founded over 20 years ago.
"Whilst we are not in a position to reveal exact figures, it's indicative of the sums involved that the clubs quickly voted to accept the deals put before them.
"Interest in the Scottish game is extremely high both at home and overseas and this has been reflected in the size of the commercial deals we have been able to strike in what is definitely a very challenging market.''
Sky Sports' Managing Director Barney Francis said: "With more games, in-game clips and highlights of every single Ladbrokes Premiership clash, fans won't miss a minute.
"Add in live coverage of Scotland's Nations League campaign, and every European Championship and World Cup qualifier and we've really got the Scottish game covered."