Five broadcasters have entered the race to show live Uefa Champions League games in the UK.
BBC, Five, ITV, Setanta and Sky are all vying for the rights having submitted bids by the deadline.
The fierce competition is likely to benefit Uefa, which is looking to raise around £450 million over a three-year period from the sale, and also the so-called 'Big Four' English teams who regularly qualify for the competition.
However, Dan Jones, partner in the Sports Business Group, has allayed fears that this could further entrench the disparity between Manchester United, Liverpool, Arsenal and Chelsea and the rest by pointing out that all Premier League clubs will be receiving more money from TV rights sales in the coming seasons.
"It is going to mean more money for those clubs participating in the Champions League although it is not an exact relationship between the value of the broadcasting deals and the clubs' income," he told the Telegraph.
"It does mean the gap between those in the Champions League and the rest will grow, but the extent of that will be very much offset by the increase in Premier League rights which is spread across all 20 clubs.
"I don't expect it to make a massive difference to our domestic market because there is already a gap, and that should not change dramatically."
If the BBC is to secure the rights it will have to come up with a way of compensating Uefa for not advertising the Champions League's main sponsors and ensuring that their logos remain visible.
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21 October 2010
21 October 2010
21 October 2010
20 October 2010
20 October 2010
