DAZN are considering purchasing BT Sport in a bid to screen Premier League football.
The sports streaming service has declared they are ‘possibly’ going to make a bid to buy their fellow broadcaster in order to show England’s top-flight.
BT Sport and Sky Sports currently broadcast the most amount of Premier League games, though Amazon Prime also stream a select few.
But what will it mean for fans if DAZN start owning a portion of the television rights? talkSPORT.com takes a look
What is DAZN?
DAZN is a London-founded startup which is owned by billionaire Len Blavatnik’s Access Industries.
The company, whose correct pronunciation is ‘Da Zone’, has been dubbed the ‘Netflix of Sport’ and expanded to more than 200 countries last year.
Despite being founded in the capital, DAZN is only recently starting to expand in England having made its name in America.
The subscription service splashed the cash, monopolising the television rights for combat sports like boxing and UFC, as well as NFL.
Big money was spent on securing boxing rights in the US with promoter Eddie Hearn given a $1billion budget over an eight-year contract and Canelo Alvarez initially secured on a $365million eleven-fight deal.
DAZN also agreed a seismic deal to secure Hearn’s stable in the UK from July 2021 with the Matchroom boss having held an exclusive UK and Ireland deal with Sky Sports since 2012.
DAZN initially cost £1.99 per month – now £7.99 – and subscribers can cancel anytime. It is available on all devices and you can sign up at DAZN.com.
Are DAZN buying BT Sport?
DAZN are close to a deal to purchase the broadcaster in a move that would hand the company rights to Premier League matches.
Asked if buying BT Sports could give thm a seat at the table for rights to England’s top flight, DAZN chairman, former Disney and TikTok executive Kevin Mayer, said ‘possibly’.
“We would love to have EPL ultimately, how we get there, there are many paths to get there,” he told an audience of TV executives at the Royal Television Society Convention in Cambridge last week.
“I’m philosophical about it, whatever makes most sense. BT Sport is a great business.”
Asked if talks about a deal were still live, five months after BT said it was considering selling a stake in the unit, he said: “It’s really quiet.”
Are DAZN showing Anthony Joshua vs Oleksandr Usyk?
DAZN’s deal with Hearn in the US means Joshua’s recent fights have been screened on their service in North America.
However, although they have a contract with the Matchroom promoter in the UK as well, those negotiations did not involve AJ.
Joshua is such a sizeable pay-per-view star that he negotiates his own broadcast deal with Sky irrespective of Hearn’s own one.
As things stand, he has one bout left on his contract which is his mandatory defence against Oleksandr Usyk this weekend.
Therefore, it will be shown on Sky Sports Box Office. Their pay-per-view coverage will start from 6pm and will cost £24.95.
After the fight, Joshua’s UK broadcast situation – which may include a future clash with fellow Brit Tyson Fury – will be up in the air.
BETTING SPECIAL – GET ANTHONY JOSHUA AT 25/1 TO BEAT OLEKSANDR USYK OR 60-1 TO WIN IN ROUNDS 1-6