By Andrew Warshaw in Paris
March 22 – Broadcasting rights for all competitive games involving European countries are being taken over by UEFA – starting with the qualifiers for Euro 2016 in France.
The decision, announced at UEFA’s annual congress here in the French capital, means national teams can no longer do separate deals with individual networks for European Championship and World Cup games.
Under the existing system, individual federations negotiate television rights for their own home games.
Television rights are the largest source of revenue for UEFA and FIFA as well as the national associations and UEFA President Michel Platini promised no-one would lose out in terms of who they are playing under the centralised arrangement.
“The knock-on effect will be guaranteed revenue for each association,” Platini said.
“You will therefore all be able to concentrate on the football, without having to worry what the draws might throw up and whether their outcome will be favorable, or not, in terms of TV rights.”
The centralised system, understood only to have been rubber-stamped in the last few days, is similar to that of the Champions League where teams receive revenue based on how large their markets are.
English Football Association general secretary Alex Horne welcomed the move.
“We thought it through long and hard and we’ve got a good deal for ourselves,” he said.
“It is a creative idea and we believe it will work.”
Platini said all 53 of UEFA’s member countries had approved the new deal despite the suggestion that central control will favour the smaller nations over the larger ones.
He said centralising match rights was essential.
“It is a project aimed, above all, at protecting and developing national team football,” he said.
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