The I-League football tournament received a major boost ahead of its October 6 start with the announcement of TEN Sports as the broadcast partner.
The commercial partner of All India Football Federation, IMG-Reliance, on Wednesday formalised a three-year deal with TEN Sports to broadcast I-League and Federation Cup competitions across various platforms, such as television, IPTV, DTH, HITS, internet TV and mobile.
In specific terms, the I-League telecast rights extends for three years starting from the fiscal 2012-13, while for Federation Cup the rights starts from the next season (2013-2014), according to releases from the AIFF and IMG-Reliance.
As part of this deal, TEN Sports will broadcast the I-League through its football channel TEN Action and will telecast 75 live and delayed matches throughout the season.
Football fans can catch the inaugural day’s action of the I-League between Pailan Arrows and Mumbai FC scheduled at Kolkata (2.30 p.m.) and the Dempo SC versus Churchill Brothers match at Goa (5.30 p.m.).
The National federation and IMG-R are also in the process of finalising a regional broadcaster in Bengal, where there is a big viewership of the sport. The regional broadcaster will be finalised on Thursday, according to a senior AIFF official.
