Man City are imminently about to reap handsome rewards coming in the form of a dramatic upswing in the value of overseas Premier League broadcast rights, according to finance guru Kieran Maguire, speaking exclusively to Football Insider about the strength of the top-flight’s global appeal.
The Athletic reported on Friday,10 February, that overseas rights are set to overtake domestic rights for the first time ever with the various international deals totaling £5.05billion, while the arrangement with UK broadcasters is worth £5billion.
City handily pocketed £153m in central payments after emerging as final victors in the league last term, but the next cycle will see the champions gladly scoop up £176m.
Maguire explained how the Premier League’s long-term strategy has paid dividends.
“I think this is due to a combination of events,” he told Football Insider’s Adam Williams.
“First of all the Premier League were one of the first to actively seek international partners all those years ago.
“The rights were originally being sold at a loss simply to build up a relationship.
“They then found that the Premier League was one product that would keep subscribers onside.
“f you can reduce your churn rate, that is very much the golden goose. The Premier League deserve a lot of credit for that long-term strategy.
“Secondly, English is a global language, which definitely helped. Thirdly, the Premier League is still more competitive than Europe’s other big five leagues.
“In Germany and France, you already know who is going to win. Because there are dynasties in other countries, it reduces the chances of an upset.
“That sense of competitive balance makes the competition more attractive and leads to bigger money.”
Coincidentally, business analysts KPMG released a study last Monday, 31 January, that showed City had held up better than any other team in Covid-hit 2020-21.
The Sky Blues are currently 12 points clear atop the league table, with Liverpool in second spot with two games in hand.