Portuguese telecommunications firm NOS has said it is keen to explore partnerships with other Primeira Liga football clubs in the wake of its deal with reigning champions Benfica.
NOS last week acquired rights for matches featuring Benfica. The deal will run for three seasons, from 2016-17 to 2018-19, and could be extended up to a total of 10 seasons, until the end of the 2025-26 campaign.
Speaking at the official presentation of the deal yesterday (Thursday), NOS president Miguel Almeida was questioned as to whether the telco will seek other deals with clubs such as Benfica’s Lisbon rival Sporting, or FC Porto.
Almeida said: “Our intention and our desire is to strengthen our partnerships with clubs. Our will is to establish similar agreements to this agreement with others.”
Under the Benfica deal, NOS – a division of media company SGPS – will pay a total of €400m ($434m) over the 10 seasons, if the deal is extended to cover the whole period. The deal covers domestic and international rights for Benfica’s home matches and includes distribution rights for the club’s in-house pay-television channel, BTV.
Concerning the distribution of the revenue, Almeida said: “I can reveal that 75 per cent relates to the rights and 25 per cent to the production and distribution of Benfica TV.”