• Bundesliga first to air on UEFA.tv
  • 60 years of archive footage on-demand 
  • Free-to-air OTT service for Europe 

uefa football

Europa League: UEFA football to go OTT 

Source: UEFA

The European football body has unveiled its new free-to-air streaming service, UEFA.tv, which will deliver games live and on-demand across Europe.

UEFA confirmed it will launch an over the top (OTT) platform for its 60 years of archived football footage as well as youth, women’s and futsal UEFA competitions streamed live across its dedicated markets.

The OTT streaming service will serve to promote all UEFA competitions by offering behind the scenes content, interviews and a wide range of additional extras.

The content will be free-to-view with supporters now able to watch live UEFA competition matches even when there is no rights-holder in the territory where they are living.

UEFA President Aleksander Čeferin said: “The digital landscape is evolving and we need to be in a position where we can anticipate and respond to these changes.

“UEFA is an innovative organisation and by introducing this platform, we will be making football and our competitions more accessible to supporters around the world.

“Our partnership with the Bundesliga is yet another example of the unity of European football and clearly demonstrates our desire to address future opportunities together for the promotion of our sport.”

Starting next season, the Bundesliga will be the first national league to be represented on the European governing body’s new service.

UEFA and the Deutsche Fußball Liga (DFL) have entered into a partnership provides for a separate channel on the streaming platform with videos from the Bundesliga in addition to European competitions.

The service is to include Monday highlights of weekend matches and shows such as the Bundesliga Special, aligned especially to the interests of international fans.

In addition, archived footage of past Bundesliga matches and UEFA Champions League matches involving German teams will be available.

The Bundesliga content on UEFA.tv will be available in major European markets such as the UK, Italy, Poland, Russia, Spain and Turkey as well as the Middle East and Africa.

In a statement, the UEFA said it will not be competing with TV channels but would rather be complementary by taking advantage of the wide range of content available at UEFA, including the archived footage, delayed games, magazine programmes or futsal, women’s and grassroots competitions.

DFL chief executive Christian Seifert said: “Media use is changing constantly, UEFA’s new streaming service is a very timely step to reach football fans around the world, especially younger target groups.”