DUBLIN-BASED Setanta Sports yesterday lost its prized rights to live Premier League football in England, a development that left the broadcaster on the brink of collapse.
This followed Setanta’s failure to tie down a £20 million investment yesterday with wealthy industrialist Len Blavatnik, which it was hoped would rescue the pay TV group.
The deal with Mr Blavatnik, agreed only a week ago subject to due diligence, collapsed yesterday, resulting in Setanta being unable to make a £10 million payment to the Premier League.
Setanta is believed to have sought an extension of this payment deadline yesterday from the Premier League, but the sports body pulled the plug on its three-year rights deal, which was entering its final season.
In a statement issued late yesterday, the Premier League said: “It is with considerable regret that we announce that Setanta has been unable to meet their obligations. As such the existing licence agreement between us has been terminated with immediate effect.
“The Premier League will now go ahead and market the 46 UK live matches [held by Setanta] for the 2009/10 season.”
Setanta’s board of directors held an emergency meeting last night to explore ways of rescuing the business, which employs 450 staff, including about 200 in Ireland.
“The board of Setanta notes the statement issued by the Premier League and will consider its options over the weekend. In the meantime, Setanta’s sports channels continue on air,” the company said.
The Premier League has set June 22nd as the deadline for new bids for the rights to Setanta’s games.
Reports in the UK last night suggested that TopUp TV, which is controlled by Mr Blavatnik, could bid for these rights with a view to tying up with the Irish broadcaster afterwards, but this could not be confirmed.
If no rescue plan emerges over the weekend, Setanta could be placed into administration on Monday.
Setanta has spent most of the past two weeks seeking new funding to secure its future. It appeared to have netted a rescue package late last week, when Mr Blavatnik indicated his willingness to inject £20 million for a 51 per cent shareholding.
Commenting on the failure to agree a deal with Setanta, Access Industries, Mr Blavatnik’s investment vehicle, said: “Regrettably, despite intensive efforts on all sides over the past few days and despite significant progress in a number of areas, there remain a number of issues which we have been unable to resolve within the time available.
“We are disappointed not to have been able to make this deal happen.”
Setanta broke BSkyB’s monopoly on live Premier League football in 2006 by bidding £392 million for 46 games over three seasons. The Irish broadcaster secured 1.2 million premium subscribers, about 700,000 shy of what it needed to break even.
Set up in 1990 by Leonard Ryan and Michael O’Rourke, Setanta began life showing football and GAA to Irish expats in Britain and the US.
