Liverpool director´s fighting words on TV deal

Liverpool managing director Ian Ayre has revealed the club could challenge the current English Premier League television rights deal.

Each Premier League club currently receives an equal portion of the current 3.2 billion-pound contract, which expires in 2013.

But Ayre believes the time has come to replicate the Spanish structure, which allows clubs to negotiate their own broadcasting contracts, leading to Barcelona and Real Madrid arranging their own deals for higher income.

“Maybe the path will be individual TV rights like they do in Spain. There are so many things moving in that particular area,” Ayre told to The Guardian.

“If Real Madrid or Barcelona or other big European clubs have the opportunity to truly realise their international media value potential, where does that leave Liverpool and Manchester United? We’ll just share ours because we’ll all be nice to each other? The whole phenomenon of the Premier League could be threatened.”

“If they (the Spanish clubs) just get bigger and bigger and they generate more and more, then all the players will start drifting that way and will the Premier League bubble burst because we are sticking to this equal-sharing model?”

“What is absolutely certain is that, with the greatest of respect to our colleagues in the Premier League, but if you’re a Bolton fan in Bolton, then you subscribe to Sky because you want to watch Bolton. Everyone gets that.”

“Likewise, if you’re a Liverpool fan from Liverpool, you subscribe. But if you’re in Kuala Lumpur there isn’t anyone subscribing to Astro, or ESPN to watch Bolton, or if they are it’s a very small number. Whereas the large majority are subscribing because they want to watch Liverpool, Manchester United, Chelsea or Arsenal.”

Ayre reasons the potential change in television rights would benefit clubs who are challenging in Europe, and believes the top teams in the Premier League are the reason for the high revenue currently being brought to smaller sides in the division.

“So is it right that the international rights are shared equally between all the clubs?” he said.

“Some people will say, ‘Well you’ve got to all be in it to make it happen’. But isn’t it really about where the revenue is coming from, which is the broadcaster, and isn’t it really about who people want to watch on that channel? We know it is us. And others (clubs).”

“At some point we definitely feel there has to be some re-balance on that, because what we are actually doing is disadvantaging ourselves against other big European clubs.”