Post by QPR Report on Feb 5, 2009 7:44:28 GMT
Crumbs at most is what it will be.
Guardian/Owen Gibson
Premier League must share TV wealth, says Sutcliffe
• Recession-busting deal could top current £2.7bn
• Sports minister calls for funds to flow to grassroots
The government yesterday called on the Premier League to ensure the proceeds of its next television deal, which could exceed the £2.7bn brought in under the existing one, were shared with grassroots sport and community schemes.
The sports minister, Gerry Sutcliffe, said that if the Premier League did succeed in bucking the recession and securing an improved deal, it must prove it was "committed to sport all the way down".
The Premier League confirmed late on Tuesday that BSkyB had won four of the six packages of 23 live matches on offer under the next contract, which runs from 2010 to 2013. The figures will not be revealed until the auction is concluded later this week but it is believed that Sky has agreed to pay a sum in the region of the £1.31bn it invested under the existing deal to retain access to 92 matches per season and have first pick of the most attractive fixtures.
The remaining two packages will go to a second round of bidding, with the incumbent Setanta and the United States sports broadcasting giant ESPN among those in the running, with a decision expected before the end of the week.
"It's good news that in the present climate they've been able to maintain and improve the package. It's a massive amount of money," said Sutcliffe yesterday. "It's good for the spectator and hopefully good for the sport. What we need to make sure now is that money gets down to the grassroots.
"One of the reasons for the new Sport England plan was to make sure that governing bodies delivered on community sport. Here's a wonderful opportunity now for football, with the new contract, to get that money down to the grassroots levels."
He called on the Football Association and the Premier League to put aside their differences – relations have been strained since the FA chairman, Lord Triesman, gave a speech warning of unsustainable levels of debt – and cooperate on investing money in grassroots projects.
Sky's decision to invest heavily to maintain its competitive advantage, coupled with the BBC's agreement to marginally increase its rights payments to £173m to secure the future of Match of the Day until 2013, has raised hopes that the Premier League can improve on the total of £2.7bn brought in under the current deal.
It is expected that internet and mobile rights will bring in more than last time and that revenues from the sale of overseas rights will also increase, despite the gloomy global economic picture.
The blockbuster TV deal could reopen the debate about the amount of money that is redistributed to grassroots football and community projects. Before the last TV rights deal went to market in 2006, Sutcliffe's predecessor as sports minister, Richard Caborn, secured a commitment from the Premier League that it would increase the amount of money that flowed down to the grassroots. In return for backing the Premier League in its bitter battle with European Commission competition authorities, which had been seeking to force it to sell at least half of the matches to a second bidder and even questioned the concept of collective selling, the government secured a new deal for grassroots football.
Under the agreement, 6% of the TV deal up to £1.1bn was to be distributed to grassroots projects, 7.5% of the £300m above that, then 10% of any money over £1.4bn. Last year, the Premier League redistributed a total of £122m and it would argue that the percentage ratchet mechanism would ensure any increase in the total would automatically mean a boost for the grassroots.
As well as its commitment to the Football Foundation, which invests money from the Premier League, the FA and government in grassroots football, the Premier League also other programmes such as Kickz, which sees club coaches work with local police in disadvantaged areas, and the community programme Creating Chances.
Sutcliffe said: "They do a great deal in terms of Kickz and the projects they've set up with the PFA [Professional Footballers' Association]. But there's more that could be done."
Culture secretary Andy Burnham, a founder member of the Football Task Force that led to the creation of the Football Foundation, has in the past called for the levy to be increased to 10%.
Guardian/Owen Gibson
Premier League must share TV wealth, says Sutcliffe
• Recession-busting deal could top current £2.7bn
• Sports minister calls for funds to flow to grassroots
The government yesterday called on the Premier League to ensure the proceeds of its next television deal, which could exceed the £2.7bn brought in under the existing one, were shared with grassroots sport and community schemes.
The sports minister, Gerry Sutcliffe, said that if the Premier League did succeed in bucking the recession and securing an improved deal, it must prove it was "committed to sport all the way down".
The Premier League confirmed late on Tuesday that BSkyB had won four of the six packages of 23 live matches on offer under the next contract, which runs from 2010 to 2013. The figures will not be revealed until the auction is concluded later this week but it is believed that Sky has agreed to pay a sum in the region of the £1.31bn it invested under the existing deal to retain access to 92 matches per season and have first pick of the most attractive fixtures.
The remaining two packages will go to a second round of bidding, with the incumbent Setanta and the United States sports broadcasting giant ESPN among those in the running, with a decision expected before the end of the week.
"It's good news that in the present climate they've been able to maintain and improve the package. It's a massive amount of money," said Sutcliffe yesterday. "It's good for the spectator and hopefully good for the sport. What we need to make sure now is that money gets down to the grassroots.
"One of the reasons for the new Sport England plan was to make sure that governing bodies delivered on community sport. Here's a wonderful opportunity now for football, with the new contract, to get that money down to the grassroots levels."
He called on the Football Association and the Premier League to put aside their differences – relations have been strained since the FA chairman, Lord Triesman, gave a speech warning of unsustainable levels of debt – and cooperate on investing money in grassroots projects.
Sky's decision to invest heavily to maintain its competitive advantage, coupled with the BBC's agreement to marginally increase its rights payments to £173m to secure the future of Match of the Day until 2013, has raised hopes that the Premier League can improve on the total of £2.7bn brought in under the current deal.
It is expected that internet and mobile rights will bring in more than last time and that revenues from the sale of overseas rights will also increase, despite the gloomy global economic picture.
The blockbuster TV deal could reopen the debate about the amount of money that is redistributed to grassroots football and community projects. Before the last TV rights deal went to market in 2006, Sutcliffe's predecessor as sports minister, Richard Caborn, secured a commitment from the Premier League that it would increase the amount of money that flowed down to the grassroots. In return for backing the Premier League in its bitter battle with European Commission competition authorities, which had been seeking to force it to sell at least half of the matches to a second bidder and even questioned the concept of collective selling, the government secured a new deal for grassroots football.
Under the agreement, 6% of the TV deal up to £1.1bn was to be distributed to grassroots projects, 7.5% of the £300m above that, then 10% of any money over £1.4bn. Last year, the Premier League redistributed a total of £122m and it would argue that the percentage ratchet mechanism would ensure any increase in the total would automatically mean a boost for the grassroots.
As well as its commitment to the Football Foundation, which invests money from the Premier League, the FA and government in grassroots football, the Premier League also other programmes such as Kickz, which sees club coaches work with local police in disadvantaged areas, and the community programme Creating Chances.
Sutcliffe said: "They do a great deal in terms of Kickz and the projects they've set up with the PFA [Professional Footballers' Association]. But there's more that could be done."
Culture secretary Andy Burnham, a founder member of the Football Task Force that led to the creation of the Football Foundation, has in the past called for the levy to be increased to 10%.