MILAN - CBS Sports has secured exclusive rights to screen Serie A matches in the United States for the next three seasons, Italy's top flight soccer league and the U.S. TV group said in a joint statement on Thursday.
Besides 380 league matches per season, the deal also includes some Italian Cup matches and the one-off national Super Cup Final, they added.
A source familiar with the matter said CBS Sports will pay some $200 million to screen the Serie A games over the 2021-2024 period, and $21 million for the Italian Cup.
Rival ESPN has been broadcasting Serie A matches in the U.S. since 2018, mainly via its streaming service ESPN+, under an agreement expiring in June. CBS Sports will broadcast all the matches on its streaming service Paramount+, while some games will be aired on its regular TV channels.
The deal will expand CBS Sport's soccer packages in the U.S., where it holds the broadcasting rights for UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, NWSL, Concacaf men's and women's World Cup qualifiers and Argentina's Primera División, among others.
(Reporting by Elvira Pollina; Editing by Keith Weir)
