LONDON: Lagardère Sports announced Monday that it will continue to distribute the worldwide media rights for the Kontinental Hockey League (KHL) for another four years.
As the the ice hockey league’s media rights partner since its inception in 2008, Lagardère Sports has extended its commitment and will now manage media rights outside of Russia, Belarus and Kazakhstan from 2017/2018 through to 2020/2021.
The deal also includes rights across all broadcasting platforms. As an official representative of the KHL media rights, Lagardère Sports will now manage KHL data and betting rights across the globe. As part of their long-term partnership, Lagardère Sports have worked with the league to develop a growth strategy for its international expansion.
The agency's mandate is to further increase the popularity and visibility of KHL around the world and expand the commercial potential of KHL and its clubs that receive annual profits from the league’s media rights distribution.
Tigran Sirunyan, executive director Acquisitions, Media – Europe, Lagardère Sports, said: “The KHL is making a big impact on the sporting world, and is helping ice hockey reach more and more audiences. We are delighted to be using our expertise to create maximum value for the League and supporting its growth, whilst bringing all the exciting action from the ice straight to the fans, across the globe. KHL has proved to be a reliable partner throughout the years of our cooperation, so extending our partnership is a logical step in reinforcing our further interaction.”
Sergey Dobrokhvalov, KHL Marketing and Communications vice-president, said: “Lagardère Sports has been a trustworthy partner of KHL for almost a decade now, and we are pleased to extend our relations for another four seasons. Being a leader in global sports marketing with vast media rights experience and passion for our sport, the company will further help us increase the KHL distribution worldwide. KHL television rights are already sold to over 30 countries in the world, and we hope that this number will continue to grow in the near future. The league has undergone comprehensive development over the last seasons, and we appreciate Lagardère Sports’ contribution to this ongoing process. I am convinced that our enhanced cooperation will remain mutually beneficial and will present a great opportunity to foster the League’s promotion on the international media market.”
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