August 2 – With the first round of Scotiabank Champions League fixtures kicking off the 2016-17 season tonight with Trinidad’s Central at home to Canada’s Vancouver Whitecaps and Mexico’s Pachuca at home to Honduras’ Olympia, CONCACAF has announced a significantly expanded Spanish-language TV deal in the US with Univision.
The new campaign will be the first time all Champions League games have been broadcast live in the US. They will also be available on multiple digital platforms.
The 24-team tournament will be broadcast across UDN and Galavisión networks as well as via the Univision Deportes App and via livestreaming on Univision Now and UnivisionDeportes.com.
CONCACAF is working hard to boost the profile of its Champions League and the expanded broadcast deal is significant as it encourages viewers, and especially the often one-team focused Spanish-language market, to become fans of the competition as well as their favourite teams.
Mexico and the United States each have four teams in the tournament alongside teams from Canada, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, Panama, Belize, Nicaragua, as well as three teams from the Caribbean.
CONCACAF president Victor Montagliani emphasised the importance of the TV deal to expanding the competition’s profile and fan base. “As the fan base of the Confederation’s premier club competition continues growing, we are proud to count on Univision to expand the reach of our tournament, while ensuring that millions of soccer fans enjoy and experience the game through multiple platforms,” he said.
The first round of group matches will be played Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday nights over the next three weeks. Group games continue in October, followed by the quarterfinals from February 21, 2017 to March 2, 2017. The winner of the tournament will be crowned in April 2017 and will qualify for the 2017 FIFA World Club Championship.
Liga MX’s Club America are the current back-to-back Scotiabank Champions League champions.
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