Champions League prize is up for grabs

chris

Cheltenham's rolling hills will this week provide the backdrop to negotiations for one of the biggest commodities in sport. Executives from all the major broadcasters have descended on the Festival as they put together bids for the second round of the tender process for Champions League rights.

The tender documents were issued in February and the first-round bids are due in.

ITV and Sky jointly hold the rights until July next year but the three subsequent years' coverage of Uefa's flagship club tournament are up for grabs.

Although Sky's head of news and sport, Vic Wakeling, is no great racing lover, other television executives consider Cheltenham to be a useful place for such joint bids to be discussed in a discreet environment.

The BBC, which has several executives enjoying Cheltenham's hospitality, has been heavily linked with a bid but remains tight-lipped over its intentions.

There would be complications surrounding obligations for the so-called "bumper break" ads that sponsors receive, but senior Uefa figures have confirmed to this column a willingness to mediate with commercial partners.

One broadcaster expected to make a late run up the rails is Five, which returned to profit in the annual accounts it recently released, and its German parent, RTL, is willing to underwrite one-off, big-ticket bids.

Five showed its interest in football with a big bid for one of the Premier League live packages that missed out on the prize by single-figure millions.