eFootball.Pro reaches broadcast deal with Sport1
eFootball.Pro has entered an agreement with German television channel Sport1 that will see the action broadcast on its network.
Specifically, matches and highlights from the Pro Evolution Soccer competition will be shown on eSports1, as well as Sport1’s website and YouTube channel. The deal was brokered by media rights agency Sportradar.
The first broadcast of the eFootball.Pro across the network will be on February 23rd, coinciding with the third match day. The fixtures on the day will be Boavista FC vs. AS Monaco, FC Schalke 04 vs. FC Nantes, and FC Barcelona vs. Celtic FC.
The fourth and fifth match days, in March and April respectively, will also be broadcast on the aforementioned platforms as well as the last chance group, semifinals, and grand finals in May.
Earlier this year, Sport1 entered a two-year licensing deal with ESL to provide coverage on eSports1. The esports-specific channel will air ESL’s competitions in League of Legends, Clash Royale, and Dota 2 to its audience in Germany, Austria, and Switzerland.
Sport1, just last month, also partnered with Activision Blizzard on a multi-year basis to broadcast the Overwatch League live on eSports1. The channel is aiming to air a minimum of 1,200 hours of esports annually.
Esports Insider says: Sport1 has made plenty of interesting moves in esports so far by launching an esports-specific channel and acquiring the broadcast rights to both the Overwatch League and ESL’s events. Adding in a mostly-unproven, newly-launched league is more of a risk than the previous two deals but it’s intriguing to see it take a chance nonetheless.
