BROADCAST RIGHTS
U.K. broadcaster ITV has signed a deal with UEFA to become the new home of England men’s soccer qualifying games. All European qualifiers, UEFA Nations League ties and friendlies between major tournaments will be shown on ITV from September 2024 through to June 2028.
The first set of games will be England’s bid to reach the 2026 FIFA World Cup finals in North America, followed by the European qualifiers to UEFA Euro 2028. In total at least 40 games, approximately 10 each season, will be shown by ITV over the period this new rights deal covers.
ITV had previously held the rights for England European qualifiers from 2018 until 2022 and were succeeded by Channel 4. ITV currently holds the rights to show the UEFA Euro 2024 and 2028 tournaments, sharing coverage with the BBC.
ITV also holds broadcast rights for England women’s soccer team games until 2025 and shared rights for the FIFA Women’s World Cup 2023.
OLYMPIC FILMS
India’s Film Heritage Foundation (FHF) and Olympic Museum in Lausanne, Switzerland have teamed to present Olympics in Reel Life – A Festival of Films and Photographs. The event will include a curated festival of Olympic-themed films, sourced from the Olympic Museum’s collection, directed by Carlos Saura, Milos Forman, Kon Ichikawa and Leni Riefenstahl among others.
The initiative was unveiled by FHF ambassador Amitabh Bachchan alongside FHF founder Shivendra Singh Dungarpur, Olympic gold Medalist Abhinav Bindra, hockey legend M.M. Somaya and badminton player Aparna Popat. The festival will take place in Mumbai at the National Centre for Performing Arts (Oct. 1-7) and in New Delhi at the India International Centre (Oct. 7-14).