A key aspect of the agreement with Infront Sports & Media is the exclusive pay-TV deal for all 64 matches of the World Cup across Italy. Of these matches, Sky will have the right to broadcast 39 matches exclusively live on pay-TV.
Sky’s World Cup rights package includes the Final Draw for the 2006 FIFA World Cup, which takes place on December 9, 2005 in Leipzig, Germany. It has also purchased the exclusive rights to the Official Preview Series of the World Cup for Italy, produced by Infront Sports & Media in association with FIFA (16 x 26-minute programmes) and the exclusive rights to the Official Film Collection, part of the FIFA Archive.
In addition, the network acquired two other FIFA events - the Confederations Cup 2005, which kicks off in Germany this June, and the World Youth Championship, in the Netherlands, from June 10 to July 2.
Italy’s national broadcaster, RAI, has the right to show one match a day on free to air TV (25 matches in total), through an agreement signed in 2001.
