BT in-house lawyers handle £1.2bn Champions League broadcasting deal
Telecoms giant secures exclusive broadcasting rights without need for external counsel
March 09, 2017 at 08:41 AM
2 minute read
BT's £1.2bn deal to secure exclusive broadcasting rights for all Champions League and Europa League football, signed earlier this week, was completed without the use of external counsel.
Two BT in-house lawyers advised on the deal – consumer general counsel Russell Johnstone and media chief counsel Matthew Phillips.
The intricacies of the deal were finalised in a period of just one week, after BT won a competitive auction process for exclusive broadcasting rights until 2021.
UEFA, which own the rights to both football competitions, was represented by TEAM Marketing, a Switzerland-based media and marketing firm that provides a range of services to UEFA, including acting as its sales agent. Its team on the deal included senior legal counsel Andrew Crank and director of business affairs Oliver Holland.
BT consumer CEO John Petter said: "The UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League are two of the best competitions in the world and we would like to thank UEFA for choosing us as their exclusive broadcast partner in the UK. The UEFA Champions League is due to get even stronger and we are delighted that fans will be able to enjoy two live matches a night for the first time."
BT has been broadcasting the elite club competitions since 2015, under an £897m deal agreed in 2013.
Although this deal was handled in-house, BT is currently understood to be completing a review of its UK legal advisers.
BT's last panel review saw media law specialists Wiggin and Sheridans win roles on the telecoms giant's UK roster. Other panel firms include Gateley, Bird & Bird, CMS Cameron McKenna and Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer.
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