Al Jazeera and Canal Plus are set to go head-to-head in a battle for Champions League football in France underlining the fierce competition among broadcasters for the sport’s lucrative television rights, reports The Financial Times.
The auction is likely to be closely watched by UK broadcasters BSkyB and BT, which have been engaged in their own multibillion-pound tussle for football coverage.
It will also give clues about the sports strategy of Al Jazeera which – like France’s leading football club Paris Saint-Germain – is owned by Qatar.
Monday’s auction is expected to feature al Jazeera’s sports network, recently rebranded beIN Sports, as well as Canal Plus, the broadcaster owned by Vivendi.
Eurosport, in which US network Discovery has agreed to take a majority stake, may also bid.
“It’s very open,” said François Godard, an analyst at Enders Analysis. “BeIN Sports can be aggressive.”
Read more of this report from The Financial Times.