Back in March, the Premier League announced they were suspending their relationship with Okko Sport due to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. Three months later, the Premier League has a new Russian rightsholder but the war is still happening, so England’s top league decided to suspend that relationship before it even started.
The Athletic revealed that Premier League clubs were told Thursday morning about the decision to suspend their deal with Match TV. The contract is a six-year deal that runs through 2028. Formula 1 and WWE have previously terminated their contracts with Match TV.
Suspending a TV rights contract means more than just not showing games in Russia. Match TV is owned by Gazprom Media, whose parent company is Gazprombank, which is owned by Gazprom where the Russian government has majority ownership. In addition, Russia president Vladimir Putin signed a decree in 2009 to order Match TV to open.
Needless to say, Match TV is tight with Putin and with Gazprombank currently facing sanctions and investigations by the United States, it’s not a surprise the Premier League is holding off on beginning that relationship.
