Liverpool Football Club’s very own official TV channel will finally launch in the UK in September following an agreement between the European giants and the Setanta Sports network. The channel is to be bundled in with Setanta’s £9.99 sports pack. Although there will be no option to take just the LFC channel, there is no minimum contract term for the package.
The channel will be simply called ‘LFC TV’ and will also be streamed online for e-season ticket holders to view. The club and the broadcaster have signed a three-year-deal to provide this service, which has been planned for some time.
Today’s announcement details how fans with a Sky system can view the new channel, but promises that the channel will also be made available on Virgin’s cable services, details to follow. The Freeview service doesn’t have the capacity to show the channel in full, but Setanta’s subscribers on Freeview can see some of the programming on Setanta’s own Sports 1 channel.
The lucrative deals signed for TV rights between Premiership clubs and Sky and Setanta mean that LFC TV won’t be able to show any live action from the Premiership, in fact none of the club’s first team fixtures can be shown live. There will however be delayed broadcasts in full of every game the club plays. The club also plan to show “selected” reserve fixtures and “no less than 50% of all friendlies” involving the club. Coverage from the Academy is also planned.
One aspect many Reds will be looking forward to is exclusive coverage of new signings, and news from inside Melwood. A programme called “LFC Now” is set to broadcast every day and will feature interviews with staff and players past and present. LFC’s past won’t be neglected, with former heroes already signed up for regular interviews and a vast archive of footage from days gone by ready to be shown. There are even plans for a show billed as a “live, interactive football forum” called “This is Anfield”, which will feature ex-players discussing with fans whatever is hitting the Anfield headlines at that time.
The list of content revealed by the club includes:
- Delayed coverage of all LFC’s League and European Cup games.
- A minimum of six hours of original programming content will be shown five days a week all year round.
- A daily news round-up.
- Exclusive interviews with current staff and players.
- Classic games.
- At least half of all Liverpool’s friendlies will be shown live and exclusively.
- Former Liverpool players will feature in live studio discussions along with supporters, celebrity supporters and football pundits.
Also included in the Setanta Sports Pack from August will be 46 Premier League games (the replacement for the old ‘pay-per-view’ offering, Sky are showing another 92 live games). The channels included are LFC TV, Setanta Sports 1, Setanta Sports 2, Setanta Golf, Racing UK, Racing World, NASN (North American Sports Network), Celtic TV and Rangers TV.