Eleven Sports will launch two new channels in Britain and Ireland showing live matches from the top Italian and Spanish football leagues, taking on Sky and BT "in the race for viewers," according to Kate Holton of REUTERS. Eleven Sports delivers up to 30,000 live hours per year to more than 17 million paying customers in markets including the U.S., Singapore, Myanmar, Italy, Poland and Portugal. Led by the former head of TV at BT, Marc Watson, Eleven Sports also agreed for IMG to "take a minority stake in its new British channels." Watson said, "The time is right for a new entrant." (REUTERS, 7/12). ADVANCED TELEVISION reported Eleven Sports 1 will be 100% football, "showcasing some of the biggest leagues, best teams and leading players;" and Eleven Sports 2 will provide premium fight sports, esports and extreme sports for dedicated fans, plus "football overspill from Eleven Sports 1." IMG will produce the output for both channels from its production HQ at Stockley Park. Four live Event channels that "pop up" to prevent schedule clashes and "enabling fans to access several simultaneous matches at one time will also be utilised" (ADVANCED TELEVISION, 7/13).
UEAF YOUTH LEAGUE: Eleven Sports secured live and exclusive Portuguese rights to UEFA Youth League for three years from the '18-19 season. The agreement with the UEFA Youth League bolsters Eleven's rights portfolio in Portugal (Eleven).
