LONDON: MP & Silva, the international sports agency that in its heyday owned, managed and distributed television and media rights to some of the most prestigious sports events around the world, with a portfolio that provided over 10,000 hours of programming annually to over 200 broadcasters in 215 countries, has officially been wound up following a hearing at the UK’s High Court of Justice.
A petition to dissolve the business – majority owned by Chinese parent companies Everbright and Baofeng – was brought by the French Tennis Federation over dues in excess of $6.6 million owed to FFT. The case was heard on Wednesday.
The FFT petition had two supporting creditors: Jochen Lösch, the agency’s former chief executive; and professional services company Grant Thornton, the agency’s auditor.
MP & Silva has defaulted on payments to multiple rights-holders, the largest quantum being to Serie A, Italian club football’s top flight, which is set to take the company to court over unpaid rights fees totalling nearly €38 million ($44.4 million), SportsPro Media reports.
