Chinese Super League strikes new deal with rights-holder

The China Sports Media agency has struck a five-year extension to its rights deal for the Chinese Super League, the top division of domestic club football.

State news agency Xinhua said the agreement was announced at the CSL’s shareholders’ meeting yesterday (Wednesday).

The original five-year contract, spanning 2016 to 2020, has been extended to a 10-year deal that will expire in 2025.

Xinhua said the agreement will increase CSM's total fee across the contract from CNY8bn (€1.02bn/$1.25bn) to CNY11bn.

CSM, which is better known as Ti’ao Dongli, struck the original rights deal in 2015. Its rights fee for the first year of the deal alone was said to be more than 14 times the sum earned in 2015 from deals with state broadcaster CCTV, provincial sports channels and new media companies.