SPL clinch £125m TV deal with Setanta

13 April 2012

Delighted: Lex Gold


The SPL were last night celebrating a new tie-up with Setanta worth £125million over four years, which will see top clubs double their money from broadcasting.

A strategy meeting at Dalmahoy ended with the announcement of the new contract, which will start from season 2010/11.

Currently dividing up £13m a year from the Irish-based broadcasters, the confirmation that clubs will now share a pot of £31m per annum will be warmly welcomed.

Even SPL strugglers can now expect to rake in a sum in the region of £1.25m when the new deal kicks in, while the champions will effectively collect double that figure.

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Delighted to deliver a resounding response to those who accused the SPL of ineptitude when the fixtures row was at its peak last season, executive chairman Lex Gold said: 'We are punching above our weight in Europe and this injection of support from Setanta will allow us to pick up and continue that. It's a good-news day for Scottish football.

'We are more than doubling our money. The existing deal is for £54.5m and this is for £125m.

'The news has been warmly greeted by the clubs. You go into a lot of detail with this process but a deal worth £125m is astounding.

'Setanta are also delighted, because we have grown together. They see the SPL and Scottish football as very important to their company going forward.'

Setanta's faith in Scottish football's top tier is a stunning vindication of an organisation denounced for their failure to extend the season for the benefit of UEFA Cup Finalists Rangers three months ago.

Aware at the time that a highly lucrative television deal was already in the pipeline, Gold resisted the temptation to jab a finger at the critics yesterday, adding: 'I should point out this process had already started when we were being roundly criticised.

'It was painful and I have my own views on how unfair it was. The point is we got on with the job of developing our commercial relationships and we have now delivered the biggest commercial deal in Scottish football.

'This is our national game and criticism is healthy, so I don't see this as an answer to our critics. But it was fascinating the criticism was going on while this process was moving forward.'

Despite the existing deal having two years to run, Gold moved to propose advance negotiations over an extension in April.

Wary of the direction in which the financial winds were blowing, he admitted: 'I said to the board that we had two and a bit years to go and we had to think about when we should go back to the market place.

'My view was to look at the way the economy was going and the fact there was a need to get in early. Against that background, the deal we have got is remarkable.'

Not least given the problems suffered by the SFA in finding a new sponsor for the Scottish Cup competition.

Gold added: 'Everybody benefits as part of this process, because we give £1.75m per annum to the Scottish Football League.'

Colin Davidson, Head of UK Production for Setanta Sports, said: 'This is the largest television rights deal in Scottish football history and establishes Setanta as the longest-running TV partner of the SPL.'

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