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Amazon to take on BT and Sky after opening talks with Prem chiefs to take more matches after restart


AMAZON are in talks with the Premier League to land MORE matches including Saturday 3pm kick-offs when the season restarts after the coronavirus delay.

The streaming broadcaster made a successful launch in December after showing fixtures across the Christmas period.

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 Amazon hope to win rights to more of the remaining Premier League games, including the 3pm Saturday kick-offs

Amazon hope to win rights to more of the remaining Premier League games, including the 3pm Saturday kick-offsCredit: Getty Images – Getty

 TV deals are up in the air as Jurgen Klopp waits for the chance for Liverpool to sew up their title glory

TV deals are up in the air as Jurgen Klopp waits for the chance for Liverpool to sew up their title gloryCredit: AFP or licensors

Their online Prime Video service paid upward of £90m over three-years until 2022 to show 20 matches a campaign.

And they are now looking to grab some of the Saturday afternoon clashes, with England’s top flight expected to return next month.

The FA have lifted the 3pm blackout to allow fans to watch games, with a stadium ban in place due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Sky and BT Sport already have rights for 47 of the remaining 92 games, which will be screened in their subscription channels.

The two companies, whose deals are worth more than £4bn over the current three-year cycle, have also been involved in the initial discussions.

They have been pushing to show the lion’s share of the other 45 matches, but Amazon are pushing hard and ready to throw millions on the table.

The Government wants the outstanding matches to be available for all locked-out fans.

They have hinted they may have to be shown on free-to-air TV, including on Freeview or YouTube, with the expectation that “two or three” games will be screened by the BBC.

Amazon want to expand the amount of games they have in 2022, and are willing to put hefty funds into their Prime service.

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The broadcaster announced yesterday (Wednesday) the expansion of their Bundesliga coverage for this season to show seven remaining league games.

Along with this, they already have tennis and a number of high-profile documentaries including the upcoming Tottenham fly-on-the-wall show.

Anti-coronavirus measures has already begun, with the third round of testing held yesterdayand results published.

All 20 Premier League clubs are now back in training, but a number of players are refusing to return for ‘Project Restart’ until it is fully safe.

The league is still set to start at some point next month, although the initial target date of June 12 is not thought to be unrealistic.

This is largely due to managers’ demands for up to four weeks of intensive contact training before the resumption.


Source: Soccer - thesun.co.uk


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