Italian Clubs Eye $7.4B Infront TV Rights Deal For Serie A

Serie A clubs "are considering a proposal to sell their TV rights" from the '15-16 to '20-21 seasons for an up-front €5.5B ($7.4B), according to Matt Scott of INSIDE WORLD FOOTBALL. According to a report in Italy's Il Sole 24 Ore, Infront "has tabled a bid underwriting the league's income from televised matches for six seasons." It would guarantee €900M ($1.2M) to €930M ($1.3M) a year for the 20-club league. After years of decline in media revenues, which were "blamed for Italy's slide from being the dominant European league" in the early '90s, "stiff competition" between Italy's existing pay-TV broadcasters, Sky Italia and Mediaset, "has revived the market." Now with the Infront offer, Serie A clubs "stand to extract still more value from their TV rights." The long-term nature of the Infront proposal "would also bring added certainty of income, assisting clubs in their business planning when considering stadium and player investments" (INSIDE WORLD FOOTBALL, 10/8).