FANS of LaLiga are set for big changes in how they watch matches this year.
The Spanish top flight has been shown on ViaPlay since the Swedish streamers’ introduction into the UK market.
ViaPlay bought Premier Sports’ UK rights in July 2022 in a deal believed at the time to be worth around £30million, a bundle that included LaLiga action.
Following a period of assessment, ViaPlay deemed the UK market to be too crowded and competitive and opted to withdraw.
This has led to Premier Sports’ shock return, with the broadcaster buying back their rights.
Premier Sports agreed a three-year deal with LaLiga in June 2022.
The rights initially transferred over to ViaPlay, but are now set to return to Premier Sports, with 18 months remaining on the deal.
Over the last 18 months, matches would sometimes be shown on ViaPlay Xtra, previously known as Freesports.
Unlike ViaPlay 1 and ViaPlay 2, ViaPlay Xtra did not cost Sky or Virgin Media subscribers any more money and was included in their basic packages.
The channel would show over 1000 sporting events per year, including some LaLiga matches, with no extra charge.
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ViaPlay Xtra will soon be no more, however, with the channel set to be removed from TVs on January 25.
Its removal, at least in the short-term, will leave a void in the UK’s semi-free sports broadcasting sphere.
But Premier Sports could seek to address that in future, having previously carried Freesports on its Premier Player streaming service.
ViaPlay Xtra’s removal is the first domino to fall in ViaPlay’s UK exit.
ViaPlay 1 and 2 are set to follow “in early 2024” and will immediately be replaced by Premier Sports.
