Starting from August 2018, for three consecutive years (till 2021) all the matches (over 1000) of UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League will be shown on Polsat channels only. Polsat Group has acquired, for Polish fans, exclusive rights for showing the CL and EL matches across all distribution channels, including TV, the Internet and mobile devices. The 2018/2019 season will be a new chapter in the history of the Champion’s League and Europa League thanks to numerous novelties and improvements introduced by UEFA for viewers and fans. All this will be available on Polsat channels only, while Cyfrowy Polsat will be the only digital TV platform to show these events.
”We are proud that we have acquired the rights to such an excellent product as the UEFA Champions League and the UEFA Europa League. It is a strategic investment for our Group, including our digital TV platform. By broadcasting the UEFA EURO 2016 qualifiers in recent years, the 2016 UEFA European Championship tournament itself, which was very successful for Poland, and the qualifiers for the 2018 FIFA World Cup we have been observing growing popularity of coverage of football matches. This has strengthened our conviction that investing in top-class football is the right direction. Acquisition of exclusive rights to CL and EL for the next three years is an exciting event for our Group,” said Maciej Stec, a Member of the Management Boards of Telewizja Polsat and Cyfrowy Polsat.
New chapter in the history of the Champions League and Europa League
Polsat channels will be the only place where all the 1029 can be watched during the next three years, 343 matches during each season and we are inviting fans to join the true football feast. Best players in the world will guarantee top level matches while Polsat Group will ensure top quality of their coverage.
New, better hours of broadcasting the Champions League matches
Champions League and Europa League in Polsat channels mean both, a new broadcaster as well as new attractive hours of the matches. Starting from the season during which Polsat Group will start showing the matches, the Champions League fans will for the first time be able to see more matches thanks to the new hours when the matches are played. During a match day the Champions League matches will be played at 7 p.m. and then at 9 p.m. (so far all the matches were played at one time, 8.45 p.m.). Thanks to this fans will no longer have the dilemma as to which of the parallel matches to watch – e.g. Real Madrid vs. Bayern Munich, or Barcelona vs. Manchester United. Europa League matches will be shown on Thursdays, as they have been so far, with matches starting at 7 p.m. and 9 p.m.
New rules of qualifying matches – more matches between European football powerhouses. There will be more opportunities to see the rivalry between the teams whose lineups include top football stars.
The rules of the qualifying matches for the Champions League will change starting from the 2018/2019 season – it will be much more difficult to be among the best but on the other hand the introduced changes guarantee top quality of the matches, more matches between European football powers, more excitement, more stars and bigger interest of the fans. A Polish club which will qualify for the Champions League will have a chance of presenting itself to a gigantic audience, both in Europe and around the world. Each match will be a rivalry between the best of the best. The quality of the matches will improve and there will be more opportunities to watch the matches played by the teams which are known to and admired by the whole football world.
”I am convinced that all the novelties which will be introduced by UEFA from the season from which we will be showing the Champions League will be beneficial for the viewers and fans. The new hours of the Champions League matches, i.e. 7 p.m. and 9 p.m., will enable viewers to see most of the matches while more teams from the strongest national leagues means higher level of rivalry and higher quality of the matches,” says Marian Kmita, Director of Sports in Telewizja Polsat. “All this will be presented to the viewers by the most experienced team of professionals – the sportscasters and experts working for our station,” adds Marian Kmita.
One will be able to watch the 1000+ matches on Polsat channels only, while Cyfrowy Polsat will be the only digital platform to show them.
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For many years Polsat TV was showing Champions League matches in Poland – in the years 2001-2006 and 2009-2012, as well as Europa League in the seasons 2009-2012. Polsat TV also has rich experience in showing, to Polish fans, the major football events where our national team plays – the fans could have so far watched in Polsat TV such events as the 2002 FIFA World Cup tournament played in South Korea and Japan as well as the 2006 FIFA World Cup in Germany. Moreover Polsat showed the 2008 European Championship in Austria and Switzerland, and the most recent 2016 Euro in France which was fantastic for the Polish national team. The most recent U21 UEFA Euro 2017 tournament, which was played in Poland, also enjoyed high interest.
