BT’s TV chief to depart

Delia Bushell, managing director of television and sport for UK telecommunications company BT, has opted to resign, according to multiple reports.

Bushell (pictured) joined BT three years ago to lead the company’s challenge to Sky through the formation of its BT Sport pay-television broadcast arm.

The Sunday Telegraph newspaper said Bushell, who previously worked at pay-television broadcaster Sky Italia, gave her notice soon after overseeing BT’s successful retention of its rights to European club football competitions the Uefa Champions League and Europa League.

In March, BT Sport maintained its hold on rights to Uefa competitions in the UK by extending its contract for the Champions League and Europa League. BT Sport’s parent company, BT, said the new three-season deal will run across the 2018-19 to 2020-21 campaigns and will be worth around £394m (€466.5m/$509m) per year, or £1.182bn in total. BT paid around £897m for its current contract, which spans the 2015-16 to 2017-18 seasons.

Under the new agreement, BT Sport will remain the exclusive UK home of all Champions League and Europa League football. BT’s rights for the first time bring together exclusivity across all live games, highlights and in-match clips of both competitions.

The Sunday Telegraph said Bushell’s colleagues expect her to remain in her post until early June, adding that BT is not expected to seek a direct replacement. BT is due to announce its full-year financial results on Thursday.