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Premier Sports chairman thrilled with acquisition of Investec Champions Cup and EPCR Challenge Cup
Premier Sports chairman Mickey O’Rourke has described the acquisition of EPCR rights as ‘a dream come true’.
The broadcaster will be the only place to watch the Investec Champions Cup and EPCR Challenge Cup this season, adding to a rugby portfolio which also includes live URC and Top 14 action.
Plans are in place to launch a 24/7 rugby channel in the New Year and O’Rourke cannot wait to see the Premier Sports offering evolve in the coming months.
“These competitions are 30 years old and I’ve been a fan of them forever,” he said.
“It’s a dream come true and it just fits snugly between our coverage of the URC and the Top 14. When those competitions are not on, the EPCR is on.
“It’s fantastic for fans to have an awful lot of club rugby in one place. All the money we raise goes to the clubs, we are just passing it back to the clubs and players, which is good news for club rugby in the UK, Ireland, France and South Africa.”
Previous years have seen a selection of group stage matches simulcast on free-to-air, set to change under the new agreement.
“The final will be simulcast on free-to-air and I don’t know who the broadcaster will be yet, that’s not for us to decide,” O’Rourke added.
Presenters, pundits and commentators all locked in 🔒🏉
Take a look at who will be fronting the @PremSportsTV coverage in this season’s #InvestecChampionsCup and @ChallengeCup_ 🏆
Read more 👇— Investec Champions Cup (@ChampionsCup) November 7, 2024
“There’s a bit of free-to-air this year in Ireland but it is confusing if it’s on in a few different places.
“We want to simplify the offering for the fans and we think we have done that.
“This will definitely be among our premium content and it gives us a little bit more focus on the English market - we are very strong in Scotland, Wales, NI and Ireland.
“It’s another brilliant product to have.”
O’Rourke was speaking as Premier Sports unveiled its 32-strong TV talent team for its live Investec Champions Cup and EPCR Challenge Cup coverage.
Former England captains Lawrence Dallaglio and Chris Robshaw will be among those offering their expert opinions, with the action getting underway on December 6.
A world class line-up of presenters, reporters, pundits and commentators 🤩
Introducing the fantastic team that will be a part of our Investec Champions Cup and EPCR Challenge Cup coverage this season 👋
It all kicks off on December 6th with 80 LIVE games across both… pic.twitter.com/3jTCJe0hQl— Premier Sports (@PremSportsTV) November 7, 2024
And looking further ahead to Premier Sports’ looming 24/7 rugby channel, O’Rourke added: “The beauty of the URC and Top 14 and particularly the EPCR competitions is very few matches clash.
“You are able to show a match on Friday night, then more through the afternoons and evenings on Saturday and Sunday.
“There are between 12 and 16 live matches a weekend, you don’t get that anywhere else. From a rugby fan’s perspective, it’s fantastic.
“We are dealing with Virgin, Sky and Amazon, who have their own launch windows, so the question is do we go for a big bang or launch separately on each platforms.
“We are still deciding that but in the meantime, we won’t miss any EPCR matches as we’ll be showing them on Premier Sports 1 and 2.”
Rugby on another level - Premier Sports is the new home of Investec Champions Cup and EPCR Challenge Cup with 80 games live throughout the competition. Visit: www.premiersports.tv to sign-up.
