Paramount to show most Champions League games in UK from 2027-31 | Champions League

US media and entertainment giant Paramount Skydance has won the auction for the rights to broadcast most Champions League matches in the UK from 2027 to 2031, in a major shake-up of the domestic rights market.

The Guardian has learned that Paramount, whose Paramount+ subsidiary owns the rights to Champions League matches in the United States, made the highest bid at this week’s auction and an announcement is expected. Amazon Prime has confirmed that it has retained the first selection of Tuesday’s matches in three main European markets as part of the new streaming deal sold by UEFA.

Sources with knowledge of the bidding process say Paramount’s offer was considerably higher than the £1 billion currently paid by TNT in what will be seen as a successful auction for UC3, the joint venture between UEFA and European football clubs which runs the Champions League, and its new commercial rights distributor, Relevent Football Partners.

Paramount Skydance is run by David Ellison, whose father, Larry Ellison, co-founded Oracle and is an ally of Donald Trump. Al Jazeera reported this week that Paramount was preparing a $71 billion bid for Warner Bros. Discovery, owner of TNT Sports.

Against the backdrop of a possible takeover, the long-term future of TNT Sports as a standalone brand is unclear, but the broadcaster’s bid for the UK rights it has held, initially under the guise of BT Sport, since 2013 appears disappointed not to be the cause. As it stands, UK fans will need another subscription to watch the Champions League, with Paramount joining a growing portfolio of football rights holders including TNT, Sky Sports, Amazon and Dazn.

Paramount’s deal would give it all live Champions League matches in the UK, apart from the first selection of Tuesday night games, which were auctioned separately in Europe’s five major markets for the first time. No collective agreement has been reached, but Amazon Prime will continue to have first choice for Tuesday matches in the UK, Germany and Italy from 2027.

Amazon has reportedly beaten competition from rival streamers, including Netflix and Disney+. Although he will have first choice of fixtures, there will be limits to the number of times he can show each club.

Canal+ will broadcast all Champions League matches in France, with Movistar having rejected a strong rival offer from Paramount to retain its rights in Spain. Paramount is determined to break into the European market and its offerings reflect growing American interest in European soccer ahead of next summer’s World Cup.

Given the value of the winning bids accepted, UEFA appears confident of securing a significant increase in the £2.9 billion-a-year value of television rights over the current three-year cycle.

The Champions League auction was the first tender launched for UEFA by US agency Relevent Football Partners since it replaced the governing body’s long-standing commercial partner Team Marketing last year. UC3 and Relevent introduced significant changes, including the pan-European streaming package and the extension of the rights cycle to four years.

The exceptional deals will be seen by UEFA as justifying the revamped Champions League, with its expanded championship phase and a single 36-team draw.

While Paramount has yet to confirm it has secured the Champions League, Sky Sports announced on Thursday evening that it had won the rights to all 342 Europa League and Conference League matches starting in 2027, in another blow for TNT.

“I am proud that we can bring European football competitions back to Sky customers,” said Jonathan Lich, Sky sporting director. “The UEFA Europa League and Conference League have delivered some of the most exciting European stories in recent years, with English clubs consistently performing well and winning trophies.”

In a statement, TNT Sports said it was not willing to match the financial terms offered by Paramount. “Ultimately, we remained committed to the approach that made financial sense for our business and for our customers,” he said. “TNT Sports maintains a strong football portfolio with our coverage of the Premier League, newly acquired rights to the Emirates FA Cup and Adobe Women’s FA Cup.”