BT's Champions League Deal Has UEFA Targeting Revenue Of $3.4B

The bidding war that led to BT's record $1.4B deal to retain U.K. rights to the Champions League "has put organizer UEFA in sight" of a 28% sales increase over three years through '21, "in line with its target," according to Tariq Panja of BLOOMBERG. BT agreed to pay 32% more than its existing contract to "continue televising the elite tournament" until '21 following a second round of bidding. UEFA Head of Marketing Guy Laurent Epstein said, "There was enough interest to make it a competitive process." The deal is the fourth to be struck by UEFA for the '18-21 Champions League seasons following auctions in Japan, China and the U.S., where Time Warner’s Turner Sport beat rivals with a $60M-a-year offer for English-language rights. A tender for German rights "is next on UEFA’s agenda," followed by sales in France, Italy and Spain in the second quarter of this year. Epstein: "We're only at the beginning but very confident about the outcome." UEFA is targeting revenue of $3.4B over the three-year cycle (BLOOMBERG, 3/13).