Rolando 2016

Soccerex

China's CCTV has reportedly secured a package of broadcast rights to La Liga and the Segunda Division, the top two tiers of Spanish soccer, for the next five seasons.

The new deal is reported to have been signed this week, with Javier Tebas, the president of the Spanish Football League (LFP), currently in China accompanying Atletico Madrid on their pre-season tour.

According to Spanish newspaper AS, the deal with the state-owned broadcaster is worth €375 million (US$407 million), or €75 million (US$81 million) per year. That sum is thought to represent a significant increase for clubs in Spain's top two tiers, who now sell their media rights collectively.

Spain's LFP and its international media rights distributor Mediapro have been busy signing deals with overseas broadcasters and agencies in recent days. So far, agreements have been struck with the likes of Digicel Sportsmax in the Caribbean, Eleven Sports in Belgium, ESPN in South America, MP & Silva in eastern Europe, Scandinavia and Japan, OTE in Greece, Sport1 in the Netherlands, and Fox Sports in Italy.

Mediapro's sales strategy is to sign three-year deals with networks in Europe, and deals for up to five seasons with operators elsewhere.