Fox International, the broadcasting group owned by media magnate Rupert Murdoch, has been given the green light to take over Eredivisie Media & Marketing, the broadcast arm of Dutch premier league football.

This summer Fox agreed a €1bn deal over 12 years, giving it a majority 51% stake in Eredivisie Media. That agreement has now been approved by the competition authority NMa.
NMA board member Henk Don told Nos television the deal is good for the game. ‘The premier division clubs will get an annual €80m, and that is a major investment in Dutch football,’ he said.
New broadcaster
According to the Telegraaf, Fox will also set up a new television channel in the Netherlands which will broadcast sport, films and series.
The new channel may also broadcast the premier league football round-up, now hosted by Nos television on Sunday evening, the paper says. That contract expires in 2014.
‘Combining Fox’s local and international experience with our channel will allow us to … further expand on the success of Eredivisie Live,’ Alex Tielbeke, director of the football channel, told news agency ANP.
Raymond van der Vliet, general director of Fox International Channels, told the Telegraaf the eventual new channel will not be behind a decoder. Under Dutch media law, the football highlights must be broadcast on a channel accessible to 75% of the viewing public, without extra costs.
Murdoch’s Sky television has the rights to English, German and Italian league football.

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