• Premier League

Liverpool not aiming to kill Premier League - Ayre

ESPN staff
October 14, 2011
Ian Ayre insists Liverpool are not trying to harm English football © PA Photos
Enlarge

Liverpool managing director Ian Ayre has sought to clarify the club's position over the distribution of overseas television revenue, insisting the Reds do not intend to break away from the current international agreement.

Ayre recently revealed Liverpool's dissatisfaction with the distribution of international TV money, which sees all 20 Premier League clubs get equal slices of the pie. In Ayre's eyes, the likes of Liverpool, Manchester United, Arsenal and Chelsea are the key subscription attracters, and should therefore be awarded a greater percentage of funds raised.

''If you're a Bolton fan in Bolton, then you subscribe to Sky because you want to watch Bolton," Ayre explained on Wednesday. "But if you're in Kuala Lumpur there isn't anyone subscribing to Astro or ESPN to watch Bolton, or if they are it's a very small number. The large majority are subscribing to watch Liverpool, Manchester United, Chelsea or Arsenal."

Ayre's suggestion was interpreted in certain national newspapers as a threat by Liverpool to break away from the 20-club agreement in order to negotiate their own international TV rights. The story drew an angry response from Wigan chairman Dave Whelan, who claimed Liverpool's breakaway with "kill" clubs like Wigan and Blackburn.

However, Ayre has clarified that Liverpool were never proposing a situation where all the money only went to a select few clubs. Instead, he insists he merely wants a more justified percentage breakdown, based largely on the current domestic Premier League model.

"What I said - and what we were trying to put forward and the debate we have been trying to open up - is not about Liverpool trying to break away and sell their own rights," Ayre explained. "At the moment the way the rights are sold collectively is great and generates a significant amount of revenue.

"However, the way those values are distributed is an issue. Domestic rights are half of the total and they take 50 per cent and share it equally and the other 50 per cent is distributed on how many times you feature on TV and where you finish in the league.

"However, internationally the figure is just divided by 20 and I don't think that is right. The bigger clubs have a bigger appeal overseas and I think that is an issue.

"I think it is unfortunate it has snowballed into some ridiculous tirade of media suggesting we were trying to run off and damage the league. We are Liverpool Football Club and clearly that is not our game but it is something I would like to see debated.

"The whole media rights landscape is very important as it represents about 95 per cent of the revenue we get from the league.

"I think it needs to be addressed because I don't think the balance is right but what it turned into was a torrent of 'Liverpool are going to break away and damage the league' and quite clearly I wasn't suggesting that."

© ESPN Sports Media Ltd.
Close

ABOUT COOKIES

To help make this website better, to improve and personalize your experience and for advertising purposes, are you happy to accept cookies and other technologies.

More Info Here Cookie Choices