Facebook win media rights Premier League football in Southeast Asia

It had to happen eventually and now it’s two in a matter of weeks: after Amazon Prime picked up rights to show some live Premier League games in the UK, Facebook have responded by shelling out £200m for rights to show them in some Asian territories.

The new kids on the block when it comes to broadcasting rights are very much in the market for the biggest rights now.

Thailand, Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos are the countries in which Facebook will be operating from 2019 to 2022 as part of this deal. That might not seem like the biggest news in terms of global popularity but there are two things to bear in mind.

One is how big a deal the Premier League is in these particular places. The English top division in particular is a massive draw for the many passionate football fans in southeast Asia. It will bring in huge numbers for Facebook.

The other is that this is a foot in the door for the social media platform. Not only do they have the opportunity to broadcast English football and build a relationship with the league and its clubs, but they also have the chance to show just how well they can do it and what they can bring to the table. Proving themselves by producing innovative and reliable broadcasts that involve a social media reaction element to the games could mean they’re more likely to get other rights in the future – either for the Premier League or other big sporting events.

Rights to the biggest events all over the world are steadily being gobbled up by Facebook and Amazon and soon we’ll be seeing just how well they produce and deliver big sporting events to a mainstream audience.

About author

Chris McMullan
Chris McMullan 831 posts

Chris is a sports journalist and editor of Digital Sport - follow him on Twitter @CJMcMullan_

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