Small Premiership Clubs Like Saints And Pompey Are Winners In EU Commission Deal On TV Rights

5.00.00pm UTC (GMT +0000) Wed 17th Dec 2003

Commenting on the announcement by the EU Commission that it had reached provisional agreement on how the FA Premiership will sell its television rights, Hampshire MEP Chris Huhne said:

'This is a good deal both for football fans and for the smaller premiership clubs like Southampton and Portsmouth who need the shared revenue from selling TV rights. Fans will get a wider choice of television so that they are not tied solely to Bsky B, while the smaller clubs get the assurance of regular revenue from joint selling,' said Mr Huhne.

'By reinforcing the principle of joint selling, this deal clearly recognises that the premiership needs smaller clubs like the Saints and Pompey just as much as the big ones. It is one in the eye for Manchester United, some of whose executives seem to have believed that they could negotiate a better TV deal on their own than with the rest of the premiership' said Mr Huhne. Under the deal, the premier league will ensure that after 2006 there are at least two television broadcasters of live matches. No one broadcaster will be allowed to buy all the packages, and create a monopoly for itself.

'Thanks heavens there is now an end to the uncertainty over the TV deals. Clubs had been freezing player negotiations because they did not know what revenue they could rely on. This deal is good news' said Mr Huhne.

Note to editors: Chris Huhne MEP is economic spokesman of the European Liberal Democrats, sitting as a lead member on the Economic and Monetary Affairs committee that holds Commissioner Mario Monti, the competition commissioner in charge of the negotiations, to account. Mr Huhne has been in active contact with the FA Premiership, the clubs and Mr Monti during the course of the negotiations.