
NEW YORK (Monday, March 30, 2015) – Major League Soccer (MLS) announced today that it has partnered with Abu Dhabi Sports Channel, owned by Abu Dhabi Media Company, to televise league matches live across the Middle East and North Africa, reaching 25 countries throughout the region. This marks the first time MLS matches will be telecast on Abu Dhabi Sports Channels.
As part of this four-year agreement, starting with the 2015 season, the United Arab Emirates based broadcaster will telecast at least two MLS regular season matches per week, as well as the AT&T MLS All-Star Game, the MLS Cup Playoffs and MLS Cup, on the Abu Dhabi Sports Channels (Abu Dhabi Al Riyadiya and Abu Dhabi Al Riyadiya 2). In addition, the broadcaster will have exclusive rights to pay and free-to-air (FTA) TV, including digital live streaming of MLS matches, allowing for unprecedented coverage across the region.
The deal with Abu Dhabi Media Company was negotiated with MLS’ new global media rights agent, IMG, as part of a continued focus to bring MLS to more fans around the world. The partnership comes on the heels of recent television agreements with Globosat in Brazil, Sky Sports in the UK and pan-European broadcaster Eurosport.