Amazon has secured live rights to the Champions League in the UK for the first time from 2024.
The tech giant will have the first selection of games on a Tuesday, with BT Sport retaining the remaining rights to the Champions League, Europa League and Europa Conference League.
The deal with Britain is said to be worth around £500m ($607m) annually to UEFA for the three seasons between 2024 and 2027 – a 20 per cent increase on the current cycle.
Amazon already holds the UK rights to 20 Premier League games per season.
“The addition of UEFA Champions League football is a truly significant moment for Prime Video in the UK,” said Alex Green, Managing Director of Amazon Prime Video Sport Europe.
A new Champions League format begins in the 2024/25 season, with the competition expanding to 36 teams and all clubs playing eight group games.
The revision of the “Swiss model” will increase the total number of games in the competition from 125 to 189.
UEFA is targeting total broadcast revenues of US$5 billion per season for this cycle, up from the current US$3.6 billion per year.
Discussions are currently underway between UEFA, the European Clubs Association and the European Leagues group on how to share this revenue.
Jacco Swart, chief executive of the European Leagues, has called for a fairer distribution across all European clubs in order to maintain the competitive balance of the competition.
However, Manchester United chief financial officer Cliff Baty argued that the top clubs deserve their bigger share.
“The pie is getting bigger,” Baty said. “The reason broadcasters are paying so much money is for the product, honestly at Champions League level.”
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