Austrian public-service broadcaster ORF has enhanced its deal for second-tier domestic football league 2. Liga rights with sports data and betting-related services company Sportradar.
The deal allows ORF to broadcast double the amount of matches it was initially scheduled to during the remaining 11 match weeks of the 2019-20 season.
The 2. Liga will resume on June 5. ORF will broadcast 22 matches, two per match week, on its ORF Sport Plus cable and satellite channel, starting with the first match back between SV Guntamatic Ried and SV Licht Loidl Lafnitz.
Sportradar holds domestic rights to the league in a four-season deal, from 2018-19 to 2021-22. It then sublicensed 30 matches per season for the duration of the deal to ORF.
Clubs from the second tier had to approve the new ORF deal as it meant a rescheduling of the remaining matches in the season, including updated playing times. A full fixture list for the next six match weeks will be announced tomorrow (Friday).
Sportradar broadcasts 30 matches per season on its linear Laola1.tv channel, with all other matches available to stream on its OTT Laola1.tv platform.
Rights to the 2. Liga were previously held by Sky, the pay-television broadcaster, in a five-season deal from 2013-14 to 2017-18.
ORF last week finalised its acquisition of live rights to the top-tier Austrian Bundesliga ahead of the league’s return on June 2.
ORF has struck an agreement with rights-holder Sky and will show a total of 15 matches between now and the end of the season. The public broadcaster already holds rights to weekend highlights and previously held live rights to the flagship Sunday matches.
