Premier League boosted by 25% rise in South American rights with £450m ESPN deal

The Premier League has secured a 25% increase on the value of its broadcast contact in South America and the Caribbean by agreeing a new deal with the American network ESPN. The Guardian has learned that ESPN has agreed to extend its long-standing partnership with the Premier League until 2031, with the new deal understood to be worth about £450m.

The Premier League told the clubs about the new deal at the shareholders’ meeting last Friday, when they were also updated about TV rights contracts in other regions that are due to go out to tender shortly.

The 25% uplift in one of the Premier League’s biggest foreign markets demonstrates that the value of its TV rights overseas is still rising at a time when the domestic market is flat, or falling slightly.

While the Premier League succeeded in gaining a slight rise in its UK deals with Sky Sports and TNT Sports, from £1.63bn a season to £1.67bn, in the new four-year deal which began last August, the growth was based on increasing the number of games available from 215 to 270.

The per-game value of the rights fell by about 10%, which has led to the Premier League beginning discussions with the EFL about petitioning to have the 3pm Saturday blackout lifted in the next domestic broadcast cycle from 2029 onwards, which would enable it to sell all 380 of its matches each season.

Every Premier League game is already available live in overseas markets, with the new ESPN deal indicating that demand remains strong.

The Premier League’s overseas TV contracts are already more lucrative than its domestic deals, bringing in £2.1bn each year compared with that £1.67bn, and that income gap appears set to grow in subsequent years.

The Premier League will hope to achieve a significant increase in the value of its US rights deal, which will go to market after this summer’s World Cup.

NBC Sports is paying £378m a year for the rights in an exclusive six-year deal that expires in 2028, and is likely to face strong competition from other networks.

The Premier League declined to comment.