Business Unit News
FOX Sports Broadcasts UEFA Champions League Final On May 22
New York (February 10, 2010) – The 2010 UEFA Champions League Final,
the culmination of Europe’s most prestigious annual club soccer competition,
airs live and in HD on FOX Sports this May, it was announced today by FOX Sports
Chairman David Hill. The event is FOX Sports’ first-ever soccer broadcast, and
joins a select few major international soccer championships ever to receive
broadcast television exposure in the U.S.
This season’s UEFA Champions League Final on May 22 is being held on a Saturday
for the first time in its history with a 2:30 PM ET FOX on-air time and 2:45 PM
ET match kick-off from Madrid’s Santiago Bernabéu Stadium.
Last April Fox Soccer Channel announced a three-year agreement to acquire the
U.S. and Caribbean media rights to the UEFA Champions League and the UEFA Super
Cup. The landmark agreement with UEFA – the governing body of soccer in Europe –
began with coverage of the UEFA Champions League Playoffs last August and
includes the 2009/10, 2010/11 and 2011/12 seasons in their entirety. Matches
from the UEFA Champions League air on a number of Fox-affiliated networks,
including Fox Soccer Channel, Fox Soccer Plus, FSN, and Fox Sports en Español,
combining to provide an unprecedented level of live and prime-time coverage.
Originally, the UEFA Champions League Final was scheduled to air on FX, Fox’s
general entertainment cable channel which is available in more than 95 million
U.S. households. FOX is available to all U.S. households, now totaling almost
115 million.
“Simply put, the UEFA Champions League Final is one of international soccer’s
most prestigious and competitive events,” said Hill. “There’s no doubt that
soccer aficionados in the U.S. will welcome the opportunity to see this game
live, and we’re excited to work with our colleagues at Fox Sports International
to make it available to every household in America via FOX Sports.”
"This year, for the first time, the UEFA Champions League Final will be played
on a Saturday,” said UEFA President Michel Platini. “This is an important change
for European football as it is a strong desire for UEFA to engage with more
families and children and to see them attend inside the stadium.”
Platini added: “Outside of Europe we also want to allow the greatest number of
people possible the chance to follow the showpiece final of the best club
football competition in the world. I am delighted that thanks to FOX Sports this
will now be possible, as for the first time ever, the UEFA Champions League
Final will be live on a nationwide broadcast channel right across the USA.”
As the primary outlet for the UEFA Champions League, Fox Soccer Channel delivers
110 live and delayed UEFA Champions League matches per season to its nearly 36
million subscribers. Beginning March 1st, Fox Soccer Plus will offer up to 22
additional live matches per year. FSN – reaching up to 83 million homes
nationwide through its owned and affiliated regional sports networks – televises
16 live matches per season, while Fox Sports en Español distributes 110 total
contests (live and delayed) in Spanish to its 14 million subscribers.
UEFA Champions League
Formerly known as the European Cup – was first staged in 1955 and features the
reigning champion and other top-of-table finishers from each of Europe’s
domestic competitions, historically including elite clubs such as Liverpool, FC
Barcelona, Chelsea FC, AC Milan, Juventus and Bayern Munich. FC Barcelona is the
current defending champion, while Real Madrid has won a record nine titles. The
2009 Champions League Final was watched live by over 145.2 million people
worldwide. For more information log onto
www.championsonfox.com.
About FOX Sports
FOX Sports is the flagship network of the FOX Sports Television Group. As
America’s top-rated network for sports for 13 straight years (1997-2009), FOX
Sports boasts rights agreements with each of the nation’s highest-rated sports.
FOX Sports is the exclusive national over-the-air television rights holder for
Major League Baseball, including the All-Star Game, alternating League
Championship Series and World Series (2007-2013); the National Football League’s
NFC package, including the NFC Championship Game and Super Bowls XLV and XLVII
(2006-2013); NASCAR Sprint Cup racing from February through May, including the
Daytona 500 (2007-2014); the AT&T Cotton Bowl Classic and the UEFA Champions
League Final. Since its inception in 1994, FOX Sports has earned 81 Emmy Awards
for production excellence. David Hill and Ed Goren are the Executive Producers
of FOX Sports. For the latest sports news, opinion and video, log on to
www.FOXSports.com.
Contact:
Ben Alkaly
Fox Soccer Channel
310-444-8642
ben.alkaly@fox.com