Broadcasting rights row settled

National Sports Council (NSC) president Hassan Saqr announced that Ahli's dispute with the Egyptian Football Association (EFA) over broadcasting rights has been settled.

كتب : Hatem Maher

الخميس، 27 نوفمبر 2008 - 20:50
National Sports Council (NSC) president Hassan Saqr announced that Ahli's dispute with the Egyptian Football Association (EFA) over broadcasting rights has been settled.

Ahli have repeatedly threatened to prohibit several TV networks from broadcasting their home league games.

The Red Devils were looking to air the matches exclusively on Ahli TV, which was launched in August.

They believed that such action would help them gain hefty commercial revenues.

But Ahli's stance has been fiercely opposed by several satellite channels such as Dream, Modern and Orbit, who bought the league's broadcasting rights three years go.

Compromise

A compromise has now been reached between Ahli and the EFA, according to government official Saqr.

"Ahli gave up their pursuit of exclusive rights, at least for the end of the season. They would be compensated," he said on Thursday.

"We will reach a definite agreement after the season's end to avoid such problems in future."

There is confusion in Egypt over who owns the broadcasting rights. There are no definite regulations that clarify the matter.