Netherlands: SBS should acquire the TV rights on free-TV to the Champions League from 2015-2018

The Dutch private free-TV group Sanoma Mediabedrijf / SBS is expected to acquire the broadcasting rights on free-TV to the Champions League from 2015-2018 for the Netherlands, according to the Dutch press, on 05/12/2014. UEFA (Union of European Football Associations) have entered into exclusive negotiations with Sanoma / SBS, thereby excluding the RTL Group, also a candidate, according to the Dutch media outlet NRC on 05/12/2014.

The matches of the Champions League, as well as summaries of them, would be broadcast on the general channel SBS6, or on the thematic channel Veronica, which is targeted to a male audience. The media group Sanoma, which owns 67% of SBS's assets in the Netherlands, would broadcast content online and on mobile platforms via its Internet portal, nu.nl.

Netherlands: broadcasting rights for the Champions League

• Free-TV: since the launch of the Champions League in 1992, the competition's broadcast rights were held in the Netherlands by the public service broadcaster NOS.
  • NOS indicated on 19/03/2014 that it would not extend its broadcasting rights for the…