StarHub secures Serie A broadcast rights for Football Channel
Best football players and three out of top four European leagues on StarHub TV
Even wider variety of football with addition of Coppa Italia and Major League Soccer
Singapore, 13 January 2011 – StarHub announced today that it has secured the broadcast rights to the Serie A, the premier Italian league, for the present and upcoming 2011/12 seasons till May 2012. The rights were acquired from international sports media company, MP & Silva.
With StarHub's latest coup, StarHub TV now offers football fans three out of the top four European leagues ranked according to the UEFA Coefficient - Spanish La Liga, Italian Serie A and German Bundesliga. The high quality of football on display in the La Liga and Serie A has been acknowledged by 50,000 professional players, managers and journalists from around the globe. All eleven players who were recently voted as the best players for their position in the FIFA/FIFPro World XI Award 2010 feature in the La Liga and Serie A, whereby Spanish champion Barcelona and Champions League winner Inter Milan dominated FIFA's 2010 team with nine players between them [1].
Serie A features the world’s best football clubs, including reigning UEFA Champions League and FIFA Club World Cup winner Inter Milan. The league runs from August to May and StarHub TV Sports Group customers will be able to watch a total of 118 ‘live’ Serie A matches for the current season with up to six matches weekly ‘live’ and in high-definition on Football Channel (Channel 222), SuperSports (Channel 202) and Sports HD (Channel 255). StarHub TV Sports Group customers who are StarHub Mobile post-paid and MaxOnline broadband customers may view Football Channel on their mobile handsets and online via StarHub TV on Mobile and StarHub TV Online.
The battle for the Scudetto remains in close contention among top flight teams including AC Milan, Napoli, Lazio Roma and Juventus. Champions Inter Milan who successfully defended their title since 2005 endured a disappointing first half of the season which culminated in the departure of coach Rafael Benitez. The team's current standing at seventh position could mean that a new champion will be crowned come May 2011.
Ms Sandie Lee, StarHub’s Vice President of Content said, "We have consistently enhanced the value of StarHub TV by acquiring content that add depth and breadth to our service. Italian football is rated among the best in Europe and we are pleased to strengthen our line-up of worldclass football with Serie A. With one of the most closely fought contest in years playing out in the league, fans can anticipate plenty of excitement and surprises."
Ms Beatrice Lee, MP & Silva’s Managing Director, Asia-Pacific (Ex Japan & Korea) said, "We are delighted to partner with StarHub, which is deeply committed to providing the most comprehensive coverage of the best football action possible to Singapore viewers. Serie A is one of the most popular leagues globally, thus we are pleased to have StarHub as our official broadcasting partner to provide the best action of Serie A to avid football fans in Singapore."
Viewers can also look forward to Serie A programmes on Football Channel, including the half hour preview show “Total Italian Football” on Fridays which will offer an insight into the teams featuring in upcoming Serie A matches; a 50-minute highlights show “Serie A Weekly Round-Up” on Mondays which will provide a review of Serie A matches from the weekend; and the magazine programme “Serie A Show” on Tuesdays which will present an overview of the Italian football arena, with behind-the-scene footages of the players, managers and fans.
In addition to Serie A, football fans will also be able to watch an even wider variety of football on StarHub TV. StarHub has acquired Coppa Italia, with quarterfinal matches commencing on 25 January 2011, as well as Major League Soccer (MLS) – USA’s professional football league featuring superstars David Beckham for LA Galaxy and Thierry Henry for New York Red Bulls. The upcoming season for MLS kicks off in March 2011, and viewers will be able to watch up to two ‘live’ matches weekly.
Telecast schedules are available at www.starhub.com/beentertained. Please refer to Appendix A for the schedule of the matches taking place this weekend.
Existing customers using a HubStation, HubStation HD or HD Interactive set-top box may add the Sports Group by simply tuning in to any of the channels in the Sports Group, and pressing the blue button on their remote controls to subscribe and start viewing the channels instantly.
StarHub TV customers can call StarHub Customer Care at 1630 or visit www.starhub.com/tv to add the Sports Group to their StarHub TV subscription.
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Appendix A
2010 – 2011 Italian Serie A: 20th Round – 16/17 January 2011 on StarHub TV
Napoli vs Fiorentina
Sunday 16 Jan 2011 @ 12.55am [LIVE & EXCLUSIVE] – Football Channel (StarHub TV Ch 222) and Sports HD (StarHub TV Ch 255)
Inter vs Bologna
Sunday 16 Jan 2011 @ 3.40am [LIVE & EXCLUSIVE] – SuperSports (StarHub TV Ch 202)
Cagliari vs Palermo
Sunday 16 Jan 2011 @ 7.25pm [LIVE & EXCLUSIVE] – Football Channel (StarHub TV Ch 222) and Sports HD (StarHub TV Ch 255)
Lazio vs Sampdoria
Sunday 16 Jan 2011 @ 9.55pm [LIVE & EXCLUSIVE] – Football Channel (StarHub TV Ch 222) and Sports HD (StarHub TV Ch 255)
Juventus vs Bari
Sunday 16 Jan 2011 @ 9.55pm [LIVE & EXCLUSIVE] – SuperSports (StarHub TV Ch 202)
Lecce vs Milan
Monday 17 Jan 2011 @ 3.40am [LIVE & EXCLUSIVE] – SuperSports (StarHub TV Ch 202)
Sports news and review shows on Football Channel (StarHub TV Ch 222)
StarHub will air "Football Channel Special" on Football Channel (StarHub TV Ch 222) in January 2011, on Saturdays at 8pm. Hosted by seasoned sports presenter Glenn Connley, the first of three episodes, premiering on 15 January, will review the three big European leagues - Serie A, La Liga and Bundesliga at the mid-season stage, with a special feature on the big Serie A games of the week.
[1] FIFA/FIFPRO WORLD XI: Casillas (Real Madrid), Maicon (Inter), Puyol (Barcelona), Lucio (Inter), Pique (Barcelona), Sneijder (Inter), Xavi (Barcelona), Iniesta (Barcelona), Ronaldo (Real Madrid), Messi (Barcelona), Villa (Barcelona).
