Sports Broadcasting In The Post-Setanta Era

For many commentators, the demise of Setanta on 23 June 2009 was perhaps the most significant sporting casualty of the economic downturn. With a whole range of sports left financially exposed, the repercussions for sport appeared serious. In addition to the financial impact upon sports governing bodies and clubs, there was a real risk that the British viewing public would suffer major sporting events disappearing from their screens. However, as the dust settles in the post-Setanta era, the picture appears rosier than originally feared.

The rise and spectacular fall of Setanta has been well documented. Starting life in a West London dance hall over two decades ago, Setanta emerged as an exciting new prospect in sport broadcasting. After years of vying with Sky to reach the top of the sports broadcasting tree Setanta was defeated - Sky emerged triumphant. For Sky Sports, the demise of Setanta may have been welcome relief, however, for the viewing public the collapse of the Irish broadcaster left a potentially significant hole in the broadcasting of top level sport in the UK.

Flash forward four months - 10 October 2009 represented a groundbreaking day in the world of football. For the first time, a World Cup qualifier (Ukraine v England) was shown exclusively on the internet. The Football Association holds the rights for home internationals played at Wembley, with broadcasters bidding for the rights to broadcast the matches. Centralised control of viewing rights to all home internationals enables The Football Association to "secure maximum coverage for the viewing public", whilst ensuring a "fair commercial value for its broadcasting rights." In contrast, England internationals played overseas are the responsibility of the host country's football association. With the Ukrainian Football Association having sold the rights to Setanta, and Setanta having ceased broadcasting, the Ukraine FA was unable to find a television broadcaster willing to purchase the rights. Instead, the rights were sold to Perform, a US sports video operator, who agreed to stream the match over the internet on a pay-per-view basis.

Despite many dismissing internet broadcasting as a temporary fix to the broadcasting problems in the post-Setanta era – is this really the case? A look at internet broadcasters such as Perform, suggests not. Although it may be a strange concept for British sports fans, internet broadcasting of sporting events is a big deal across the pond with...