beIN MEDIA GROUP (‘beIN’), the global sports, entertainment and media group, has renewed its exclusive rights to broadcast more than 300 matches from the English Football League (EFL) for a further four years in 27 countries across the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), France, Australia, and New Zealand, demonstrating once more its long-standing commitment to being the home of sports.
The multi-year media rights extension, brokered by Pitch International, the EFL’s media rights distributor in Europe and the Middle East,kicked off alongside the 2024-25 season this past weekend and will run until the end of 2027-28. Each year, beIN’s flagship platforms- beIN SPORTS and beIN’s OTT platform TOD- will have the exclusive rights to broadcast 155 matches from the Championship, 38 games from Leagues One and Two, all Play-Off matches throughout the EFL, and all 93 matches of the Carabao Cup for the first time. beIN has been the exclusive rights holder of the EFL for more than 14 years.
Mohammad Al-Subaie, CEO of beIN MENA, said: “In addition to being the oldest football league in the world, the EFL is also one of the most competitive football ecosystems globally. beIN is proud to see its relationship with the EFL extended until the end of the 2027-28 season, by which time we will have been together for more than 18 years. We look forward to four more years of drama and tension, talent and determination, and delighted to continue to provide our subscribers access to the finest moments and greatest matches from every corner of English football.”
Ben Wright, Chief Commercial Officer at the EFL, said: “The EFL ranks among some of the most exciting competitions in football and captivates supporters all over the world. As long-term partners of the League, we’re delighted to continue working alongside beIN MEDIA GROUP and further establishing the League as a premium football product to a global audience over the next four years.”
Founded in 1888, the English Football League was the top tier of the English game until 1992 when the English Premier League (EPL)was created. Since then, the EFL has been divided into three leagues of 24 clubs, currently including the likes of Blackburn Rovers, Leeds United, Sunderland, and Notts County, the world’s oldest professional football club. Among the EFL’s 72 teams are four clubs from Wales, including Wrexham, which was founded 159 years ago and has been enjoying increased visibility since the 2020 purchase by Hollywood actors Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney.
With the top three teams in the Championship switching places with the bottom three teams of the EPL, the top tier of the EFL continually features some of the best talents in the country. In fact, of the 26-man England squad that reached the semi-finals of the FIFA World Cup Qatar 2022™, 19 of them have played at some stage of their career in the EFL, including national team captain Harry Kane and Real Madrid starlet Jude Bellingham.
The partnership renewal between beIN and the English Football League ensures fans across 27 markets can continue to enjoy front-row access to the quality, entertainment and authenticity of the EFL until 2028.
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