ESPN STAR Sports, the exclusive Asian rights holder for the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) domestic and home international matches, has announced an agreement with Al Jazeera Sport for the TV broadcast rights of the Friends Life Twenty20 2012.
The deal marks a significant landmark for cricket broadcasting in the Middle East and North Africa with Al Jazeera Sport televising cricket for the first time ever with LIVE coverage of 25 matches from ECB’s domestic Twenty20 league scheduled to take place from June 12 to August 25.
ESPN STAR Sports licenses ECB broadcast rights throughout North Africa and the Middle East along with various other parts of Asia. In addition, ESS’ international cricket syndication business includes global distribution of marquee properties such as International Cricket Council events and Champions League T20 as well as Cricket Australia’s events (in Asia and North Africa).
Over the last few years, ESS has broadcast the game of cricket to over 180 territories across the globe in more than 16 languages, which has been a key contributor to the tremendous growth in the global visibility and popularity of the game.