Live Premiership soccer on RTÉ for the next three years

RTÉ and Setanta Sport have announced the successful conclusion of a deal with the FA Premier League, which will see live Premiership soccer on RTÉ for the next three seasons.
After an absence of several years on Irish terrestrial television, RTÉ viewers will be able to see approximately 15 live Premiership matches each season, beginning in 2004/05. The live games will feature on Saturday afternoons, with a 3pm kick-off.
Setanta Sport have also secured the rights to screen approximately 15 live matches each season on pay- per-view. These matches will feature on the Saturday afternoons when RTÉ is not broadcasting a live game.
The deal also means that RTÉ’s highly successful 'The Premiership' highlights programme, presented by Bill O’Herlihy, will continue in its current format for the next three seasons.
Niall Cogley, RTÉ Head of Sport, said: "We’re very pleased to be able to announce this deal which offers our viewers a real choice and consolidates the quality soccer programming already available on RTÉ. No other broadcaster in these islands will be providing live Premiership coverage on free to air television, and we’re delighted to be able to deliver at a time when top-level soccer has never been more popular. Along with our coverage of the Champions League, Scottish Premier League, international and domestic soccer, I think this makes RTÉ Television’s service for fans of the game second to none."
(GB)