BT SPORT have knocked out Sky in the race to land the UK television rights for Tyson Fury’s rematch with Deontay Wilder.
And that is despite Sky Sports Box Office reportedly making a bid well in excess of £10million, say the Daily Mail.
BT have KO’d Sky in the bidding war to land Fury vs Wilder 2
Sky’s “huge offer” came as they eyed landing an early blow on rivals ahead of the competition to get the rights for the Wembley showdown between the winner and Anthony Joshua.
BT televised Fury’s first bout against Wilder in December 2018 and the Gypsy King has stuck with them for the rematch.
And they hope millions of extra customers will sign up to watch the bout on the night of February 22.
BT Sport Box Office’s coverage from Las Vegas will be available not only to their regular customers but also for non-subscribers “through a variety of TV channels”, the Mail claimed.
It is also reported that they hope Fury vs Wilder 2 could smash the UK record 1.6 million buys that Joshua’s rematch against Andy Ruiz Jr gained in December.
The fee to watch that night as Joshua regained all his heavyweight belts was £24.95.
Sky generated some £40m in sales revenue alone before advertising income.
But BT’s belief that they could bring in even more viewers will see them resist charging above the £19.99 they did for the first fight.
US promoter Bob Arum reckons there will be more than 2 million buys in the US alone which could bring in more than £115m.
The rights in the States will be shared between ESPN – who signed a £62m five-fight deal with Fury – and Fox Sports, who work with Wilder’s promoter Al Haymon.
If Fury beats Wilder then a similar deal could be reached in the UK.
That would see BT and Sky agree to share rights to a prospective fight between the two.
Tyson Fury tells Deontay Wilder not to ‘s***’ himself in first face-to-face meeting since controversial draw
Source: Boxing - thesun.co.uk
