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Fans to enjoy unprecedented access to dramatic conclusion of the 2018/19 LaLiga Santander season
Eleven Sports remains the only place to watch all available LaLiga matches live in the UK and Ireland Starting this weekend, new broadcast partner Premier Sports to offer four matches per round via its linear pay-TV channel available on Sky and Virgin TV platforms LaLiga to make first appearance on UK free-to-air television with ITV broadcasting weekly highlights program plus one match per week starting with Levante vs. Real Madrid this Sunday
YouTube remains the exclusive platform for watching live action from second-tier LaLiga 1|2|3 in over 150 countries worldwide, including the UK and Ireland
LaLiga has reached an agreement with UK broadcaster ITV to show weekly highlights and a live fixture from each matchday on free-to-air television, starting with this Sunday’s UD Levante vs. Real Madrid CF fixture, as part of an enhanced broadcast offering affording fans in the UK and Ireland unprecedented access to the remainder of the LaLiga Santander 2018/19 season. This offering from ITV will be the UK’s only live weekly free to air football broadcast.
Javier Tebas, LaLiga President, hailed this major announcement: “This is a fantastic moment for LaLiga in the UK and Ireland. The best league in the world will be available to more fans than ever before. We are delighted to welcome Premier Sports and ITV Sport to our broadcaster stable in the UK and Ireland which already includes Eleven Sports. We are reaching the exciting conclusion to the season and millions of viewers will be able to enjoy the best teams and players in the world, as well as the passion and drama of LaLiga.”
"We are proud to offer unprecedented access to the exciting conclusion of the 2018/19 LaLiga Santander season to fans in the UK and Ireland," said Melcior Soler, LaLiga Audiovisual Department Director. "Spanish football fans across these territories can now follow LaLiga in a variety of formats while enjoying live action and weekly highlights via digital, pay-TV and free-to-air platforms".
"Few countries have an appetite for football like the UK and Ireland and we are happy to provide multiple forms of access to the best league in the world, including LaLiga’s first agreement to show free-to-air matches in the United Kingdom. This is part of our continued commitment to our fans to make LaLiga available in as many ways as possible."
LaLiga’s enhanced broadcast offering combines the reach of Eleven Sports, Premier Sports and ITV providing every minute of the action from LaLiga Santander across multiple formats and platforms, as well as the global dimension of YouTube, official broadcast partner for LaLiga 1|2|3 showing live content from Spain’s second division to over 150 countries worldwide, including the UK and Ireland.
Eleven Sports remains the only place for fans to watch every live match from LaLiga Santander, as well as 24/7 content and programming from LaLigaTV. Available in a variety of platforms, including via web, on Android TV and Amazon Fire TV Stick, as well as apps for Android and iOS including Chromecast functionality, Eleven Sports gives LaLiga fans the widest access to all the world-class content LaLiga has to offer.
Premier Sports has also secured LaLiga rights with coverage to begin this weekend. LaLiga’s new linear pay-TV partner will air four games per round across Premier Sports 1 and 2, available in 16 million UK homes across Sky and Virgin TV platforms, as well as the Premier Player online. Premier Sports will also broadcast the weekly magazine programs LaLiga World and the LaLiga Show as well as a weekly highlights show featuring all the action from every game.
ITV celebrates LaLiga’s first appearance on free-to-air TV across the United Kingdom, providing reach to the UK’s nearly 27 million UK television homes. Fans will be able to enjoy one live match per round during the exciting conclusion of the LaLiga Santander 2018/19 season, as well as a LaLiga highlights programme covering all the action from the week’s fixtures.
This week’s Matchday 25 LaLiga Santander line-up is as follows:
Friday 22nd February
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Espanyol vs. Huesca – Eleven Sports
Saturday 23rd February
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Getafe vs. Rayo Vallecano – Eleven Sports
Sevilla vs. FC Barcelona – Eleven Sports^ (delayed due to UK blackout restrictions)
Alavés vs. Celta – Eleven Sports
Athletic Club vs. Eibar – Eleven Sports
Sunday 24th February
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Leganés vs. Valencia – Eleven Sports, Premier Sports
Atlético Madrid vs. Villarreal – Eleven Sports, Premier Sports
Real Valladolid vs. Real Betis – Eleven Sports
Levante vs. Real Madrid – Eleven Sports, Premier Sports, ITV
Monday 25th February
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Girona vs. Real Sociedad – Eleven Sports, Premier Sports
The 2018/19 LaLiga Santander season is proving to be one of the most competitive in recent memory, with just 13 points separating the final automatic places for European competition from the relegation zone after 24 rounds. With such a tight race, a few results can dramatically change the course of a club’s season, with each fixture taking on new importance.
Additionally, LaLiga announced last month that all matches from its second tier, LaLiga 1|2|3, are now available free of cost via YouTube to over 150 countries worldwide, including the United Kingdom and Ireland. This provides an exciting new platform to follow all the action from historic clubs including RC Deportivo, Real Zaragoza, Malaga CF, CA Osasuna and Cadiz CF. The move has proven popular, with the United Kingdom leading all international territories in viewership numbers during initial matchdays of this agreement.
Source: laligaes.es