MxMIndia

Tag: STAR Sports

  • Star India will be FIH's media partner in eight-year broadcast and rights deal

    Star India bags hockey fed rights for 8 years

    By A Correspondent

     

    The International Hockey Federation (FIH) and Star India have announced an eight-year strategic partnership to improve the production of international hockey broadcast and extend the sport’s reach worldwide. The deal will run from January 2015 to December 2022. During the period of the deal, FIH will look to host a major event in India each year.

     

    Interestingly, Star Sports will be the host broadcaster for key FIH events both in India and across the world (except Argentina) and will be responsible for ensuring consistent and high level production.

     

    Last year, STAR Sports partnered with Hockey India to launch Hockey India League (HIL). STAR Sports showcased hockey in a completely new way, offering a TV experience relevant to the youth market. In its first season, HIL was broadcast in more than 80 territories across the globe.

     

    As part of the deal, STAR Sports has acquired global media rights for all territories, excluding Argentina. Through its network of international affiliates and other national broadcasters, content will be distributed to over 200 countries, reaching billions of sports fans taking hockey’s global viewing audience to unprecedented levels.

     

  • The sports channel has bagged the rights for the Australian Open for five years

    Sony Six pushes Star Sports out of Aus Open rights

    By A Correspondent

     

    The Star Sports network which was established with much fanfare in November saw the rights for the Australian Open being taken away by Sony Six, the sports channel from the MSM stable. The rights for the Asian grand slam are for five years and are also the channels first entry into broadcast of a tennis major.

     

    On his first major announcement after taking charge as CEO of MSM, NP Singh said: “Over the years, the Australian Open has established itself as one of the most revered competitions in the hearts of Asian sports fans. With the strong equity that the sport enjoys, we are committed to further expand the distribution of the tournament and strengthen our position in the market”.

     

    Commenting on this, Prasana Krishnan, EVP and Business Head, Sony SIX said: “The Australian Open is seen as the paramount opener to the Grand Slam competitions and we are proud to have this prestigious event in our bouquet of international sports content.”

     

    Tennis Australia CEO and Australian Open Tournament Director Craig Tiley said: “I’m delighted we are partnering with MSM in India for the Australian Open. MSM presented a compelling proposition and demonstrated a commitment to promote the event and the sport of tennis in India which continues to cement our position as the Grand Slam of the Asian-Pacific.”

     

  • Star India announces commitment of more than Rs 20,000 crore in the sports business with non-cricketing games given fair importance

    Star junks ESPN brand, launches Star Sports with 6 channels and website

    By A Correspondent

     

    Premier media and entertainment conglomerate Star India has unveiled a new brand for Star Sports across six TV channels — Star Sports 1,2,3,4, HD1 and HD2 and starsports.com. All the offerings will be under the ‘Star Sports’ brand and with ‘Believe’ as the credo. The two channels bearing the ESPN brand and Star Cricket are being suspended to create this bouquet.

     

     

    Uday Shankar

    Speaking on the occasion, Uday Shankar, CEO, Star India, said, “Cricket is too big to be confined to just one channel. Today, we are redoubling our efforts to showcase the best of Indian and international cricket to the sports fan. We will cover more of it, have wider coverage, go deeper, use multiple languages and take it beyond television. The new brand is also about showcasing our commitment to other sports. While cricket will be central to our approach, we will also be faithful to our role as a sports broadcaster and bring in the best of local and world sports to India, whether in soccer, hockey, badminton, tennis, F1 or the many other sports that fans in India are deeply passionate about.”

     

    In a communique, Star has disclosed that it has made a commitment of more than Rs 20,000 crore in the sports business. The investment is being used to fuel expansion of sports coverage in the country as well as in building exciting new leagues including the Indian Super League in football, the Hockey India League and the Indian Badminton League. The network will also showcase new non-live programming and new shows and formats, all of which will create more choice for the Indian sports fan. Post the brand refresh, the network will carry over 5,000 hours of premium live sports content, including around 200 days of live cricket in a year.

     

    The broadcaster also announced the launch of India’s first 24×7 Hindi sports channel – Star Sports 3, with content, graphics and shows in Hindi – a giant step forward to dramatically increase the reach of sports in the country.

     

    The network has been launched with a campaign that urges India to “Believe” and as if underscoring the importance of cricket to the network even though Mr Shankar says it will be faithful to other sports too, Indian cricket team captain M S Dhoni has been signed on as its first ambassador.

     

    What’s Out, What’s In

    Sr. No.

    Old Name

    New Name

    1

    		 STAR Sports STAR Sports 1

    2

    		 STAR Sports 2 STAR Sports 2

    3

    		 STAR Cricket STAR Sports 3

    4

    		 ESPN STAR Sports 4

    5

    		 STAR Cricket HD STAR Sports HD 1

    6

    		 ESPN HD STAR Sports HD 2

     

     

  • The sports channel ropes in Mahendra Singh Dhoni as brand ambassador to endorse football

    Star Sports gets Dhoni to endorse football

    By Ratna Bhushan

     

    Guess who is the biggest star signing in this season’s Barclays Premier League? Mahendra Singh Dhoni! Broadcaster Star Sports has roped in the Indian cricket captain as brand ambassador to endorse the English club football championship, the world’s biggest sports league, in India in the 2013-14 season.

     

    “The aim to associate with M S Dhoni is to introduce, invite and excite sports fans who consume a lot of cricket to sample soccer properties like Barclays Premier League and expanding their fan base,” Vijay Rajput, COO at ESPN Software India, said. Star Sports will kick off its campaign featuring Dhoni on August 11, one week before the start of 2013-14 season, in a bid to boost the appeal of soccer in a cricket-crazy country.

     

    “We believe there is a huge potential for growth in soccer viewership in India,” Mr Rajput said, adding that the premier league is one of the most watched sports events worldwide. He did not share the commercial terms of the deal.

     

    M S Dhoni, who endorses about 15 brands including beverage and snacks maker PepsiCo, sportswear firm Reebok and telecom services provider Aircel, charges close to Rs 10 crore per deal annually, industry insiders told ET.

     

    The campaign will show Dhoni glued to the TV set watching premier league matches every weekend while his family and friends look for him.

     

    The Indian captain is a known football enthusiast and a Manchester United follower who dreamed of becoming a renowned soccer goalkeeper in his schooldays at Jawahar Vidya Mandir in Ranchi where he was a goalkeeper.

     

    Arun Pandey, promoter of Rhiti Sports, the sports management firm that represents Dhoni, said, “Dhoni’s association with soccer can influence the sport in a big way in the country.”

     

    Besides getting Dhoni to urge viewers to watch soccer, Star Sports will also offer the option of Hindi commentary for more than a hundred select premier league matches to woo Indian viewers. “We believe that if you want people to consume lot of content, you should offer it to them in their language of comfort,” Mr Rajput said.

     

    ESPN Software hopes the move will help expand the sport’s viewership, which will help it increase advertising rates.

     

    While ad revenues from soccer continue to be far lower than cricket, experts say the beautiful game’s viewership is on the rise in India.

     

    “Though ratings of soccer are small on an all-India basis, in SEC-A and B markets and among the youth, soccer is consistently gaining in popularity,” Shashi Sinha, CEO of media buying firm IPG Media Brands, said.

     

    Besides the Barclays Premier League, ESPN-Star Sports network holds broadcast rights for multiple soccer tournaments including Spanish La Liga, Italian Serie A, the English FA Cup and England’s international matches.

     

    ESPN officials say advertiser interest has already picked up on the league, with 85% of the available inventory sold. “Tata Motors, Pernod Ricard, Adidas, Gujarat Co-operation Milk Marketing Federation (Amul) and Nokia India have come on board as associate sponsors on air for live telecast of the Barclays Premier League,” Mr Rajput said.

     

    Contested by 20 clubs, the Premier League season runs from August to May.

     

    In June last year, broadcast giant major Star Group’s 16-year-old equal joint venture with sports broadcaster ESPN was dissolved, with Star buying out ESPN’s stake in the JV. Post acquisition, Rupert Murdoch-owned Star became the owner of ESPN’s business.

     

    Source:The Economic Times

    Copyright © 2013, Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. All Rights Reserved

    Licensed to republish

     

  • Star Sports has announced the acquisition of TV rights for the FIFA Confederations Cup in Brazil 2013, and will also offer live coverage of Wimbledon, ICC Champions Trophy, Formula One Grand Prix events and the US Open Golf Championship, among others.

    Star Sports unveils sports bonanza in June

    By A Correspondent

     

    Star Sports has announced an array of sporting events across its network of SD and HD channels all through the month of June. With the biggest event in the ICC calendar – the ICC Champions Trophy 2013 – already underway in England, the network has also announced the acquisition of the TV rights for the FIFA Confederations Cup Brazil 2013 which kicks off from June 15 in Brazil.

     

    The third week of the month will also see the Championships at Wimbledon live and exclusive on the network. The sports broadcaster will showcase thrilling motor-racing action from the British and Canadian Formula One Grand Prixraces and the Moto GP. The month will be rounded off with live action from the FIFA Asian Football Qualifiers and the much awaited golf major – the 2013 US Open Golf Championship.

     

    The FIFA Confederations Cup Brazil 2013, to be played from June 15 to 30, brings together the strongest international teams in world football to play in Brazil, one year ahead of the 2014 FIFA World Cup.

     

    Vijay Rajput

    Vijay Rajput, Chief Operating Officer, ESPN Software India Pvt Ltd, said, “We are incredibly proud and happy to present this mouth-watering array of premium sporting content in the month of June. With such premium sporting action across sporting genres, our aim is to take the viewership of sports to a whole new level – be it through our quality of talent, look and feel of the presentation or through innovative production-led enhancements which help in creating an immersive experience for sports fans.”

     

  • Introduces video timeline for cricket with innovative video scorecard, and integration with social media

    Star India launches starsports.com

    By A Correspondent

     

    Star India has taken a new step in sports viewing on digital, with the launch of starsports.com to give Indian cricket fans a personalized audio-visual experience. Flagging off with the Pakistan tour of India, the website will present a video experience for cricket fans that includes high-definition video streaming, an advanced player that can be individually controlled, and the ability to catch up on the game through both a video scorecard and a video timeline that marks the key moments of the game.

     

    Uday Shankar

    Commenting on the launch, Star India CEO Uday Shankar said, “At Star, we have always focused on dramatically enhancing the overall consumer experience. Smart technology, combined with powerful content, can be disruptive and we are excited about offering Indian fans an entirely new way of experiencing their favourite game.”

     

    Starsports.com includes a video timeline for cricket that marks key moments of a match, while it happens, allowing users to go back, relive the moment and jump back into the action in real time. The commentary section has also been reinvented. It not only focuses on explaining the action ball by ball but also pulls in real-time conversations on social media while the match is on. A video scorecard brings statistics to life with video clips of key moments supported by detailed analytics and graphics. Fans can also catch up on games through replays and highlights.

     

  • Wish you were at the West End, Covent Garden, Piccadilly,Oxford Street,KensingtonGardens,BuckinghamPalace, Tate Modern, instead of wherever you are, says Ranjona Banerji

    The Anchor: 6 things to watch out for in the 2012 London Games

    By Ranjona Banerji

     

    I hope everyone interested in having a good laugh has been watching Twenty Twelve on BBC Entertainment, a comedy series which follows “the deliverance committee” involved in making sure the 2012 London Games run smoothly. Everything from bureaucracy to PR to political correctness to politics to jargon to celebrity are satirised brilliantly and it all seems so real.

     

    However, it is also possible that you interested in the Games themselves. In which case, here’s what to watch out for.

     

    1. The Opening ceremony on Friday, that is 1am (Saturday morning technically) for India on ESPN, Star Sports. Directed by Danny Boyle, (yes, he of the Jai Ho and slums are fun fame) it is expected to be a massive extravaganza. He has to compete with the glorious, breathtaking performance put up by the Chinese in Beijing in 2008. I don’t actually quite remember it actually, but it was spectacular. Lots of firework dragons. Or was that the first Lord of the Rings movie? Whatever.

     

    2. The Indian medal chase. This is supposed to be our best chance “ever” (please substitute your own version of an American teenager’s twang here) of winning lots of medals. Boxing, tennis (oh, wait, in India sometimes there’re both the same thing), hockey, badminton, wrestling, shooting… In fact, anything except running and jumping which, of course, are what the Olympics started with in ancient Greece. No one expects us to run and jump, least of all, us.

     

    3. Badminton starts on Saturday (go Saina Nehwal!), which is why badminton players may not be at the Danny Boyle show. Actually, so does boxing, athletics, handball, judo, tennis, volleyball, weightlifting and just about everything else. Football has already started. So maybe no one will be at that opening ceremony, so it’ll be all sparse and minimalist and New Age.

     

    4. London, the best city in the world. Apart of course from New York, Paris, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Dubai, Delhi, well of course, of course, that’s a joke! If you can’t be there, you can watch it, especially that giant red squirly whirly steel thingie made by that famous Indian artist chappie Anish Kapoor (Indian! We are the greatest!). So wish you were at the West End, Covent Garden, Piccadilly,Oxford Street,Kensington Gardens, Buckingham Palace, Tate Modern, instead of wherever you are.

     

    5. Wimbledon! This one is for me. The Championships are over, but tennis is going back to the green (or re-greened) grass. Twice in one year is remarkable and unique. (I wrote Wimbledon! But I meant Roger Federer! Of course.)

     

    6. There’s a special Olympic sport that has been included just for India. It’s called: Where’s That Kalmadi? You can seek him here, seek him there as the former head honcho of sporty stuff and hmm, other stuff, Suresh Kalmadi, weaves and dodges his way around the Games, avoiding the media, the athletes, the police…

     

  • The first edition of this T20 league will be played in August 2012. The multi-year deal includes a minimum of 24 T20 matches per season.

    ESPN Star bags SL Premier League

    By A Correspondent

     

    ESPN Star Sports announced that it has reached a multi-year broadcast rights agreement for exclusive coverage of the Sri Lanka Premier League (SLPL) in India. The first edition of this T20 league will be played in August 2012.

     

    The multi-year deal includes a minimum of 24 T20 matches per season. The first edition of the SLPL will see seven provisional teams compete for the trophy as well as a qualifier berth to the Champions League Twenty20 (CLT20) to be held later this year. The SLPL will feature 42 international players participating from seven countries. Star Cricket, Star Sports and ESPN will broadcast all the matches live and exclusive in India Starting August 11.

     

    ESPN Star Sports’ broadcast rights agreement also includes live coverage of the SLPL in the territories of Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, Hong Kong, Indonesia, Korea, Nepal, Macau, Malaysia, Maldives, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea, Philippines, Singapore, Sri Lanka and Thailand

     

    These rights, in addition to the existing T20 leagues from Australia, England and Bangladesh and along with CLT20 and ICC WT20 make ESS the undisputed leaders in this coveted cricket format.

     

    Speaking on the occasion, Peter Hutton, Managing Director, ESPN Star Sports, said: “We are delighted to be able to telecast the live matches of the SLPL in India and throughout the region. It is an excellent addition to Star Cricket’s remarkable catalogue of content in the next year, headlined byIndia’s home series against Pakistan, England and New Zealand, the ICC World T20, the Champions League T20 and the ICC Champions trophy. Sri Lanka cricket becomes the 6th cricket body with whom we are working on the shortest form of the game.”

     

    The SLPL will see all leading international and domestic cricketers from Sri Lanka joining hands with talented U-21 players. The tournament has also attracted players from Australia, Bangladesh, Pakistan, South Africa, New Zealand, Zimbabwe and West Indies.

     

  • Ranjona Banerji writes about a grouse. Either spewing venom or tongue-in-cheek

    Ranjona Banerji: Irritating ads that irritate

    Ranjona Banerji

    By Ranjona Banerji

     

    Am stepping on a few toes here and other people’s territory but then wothehell. As much news as you watch on TV (or as much TV that you watch, be honest) you’re forced to watch as much advertising as content.

     

    And sometimes it’s fun (like Hari Sadu and naukri.com) or even the poor chappie who thinks he’s eating chicken, but it turns out to be a doggie. Or Fastrack’s funny series on the risqué side with Genelia D’Souza and Virat Kohli. Or even the Flipkart ads where children play adults.

     

    But what does one make of Priyanka Chopra squirming about on the ground to a song that does not match the bizarre dance she does as she tells us she hates the “chip chip”. All that happens for Garnier is that most people throw up and switch channels.

     

    Through the telecast of Wimbledon on Star Sports you get to hear that “amazing Thailand always amazes”. Well, duh, couldn’t they think of another word? Or has someone done Thailand tourism in?

     

    The Kelloggs ads with that vastly annoying mother who does something as simple as throw a few almonds on a bowl of cereal and pretends she’s invented sliced bread is anodyne as such ads normally are.

     

    But the winners of the most irritating ads have to be Reliance Foundation and Coca-Cola. Insensitivity seems to rule the Coca-Cola ad in which a group of not very well off (how do I say this politely?) children play cricket in some dusty desert scrub land as a voice over tells us poetically how they have no cricket bat, ball, stumps, the pavilion has no roof and so on and ends some poignant note about how this is not play but the call of the earth or something. Then Sachin Tendulkar with his strange new hairstyle drinks a Coke and says play on. The children and Tendulkar never meet and you get the feeling that the children cannot afford to drink Coca-Cola, certainly not one each.

     

    And there’s the Reliance Foundation. I’m not getting to the connection with the programme Satyamev Jayate. For one, the ad looks like a copy of the Vedanta ad, which claimed to be saving the lives of various village children with schools and food and making their dreams come true. The ad ran into as many problems as Vedanta does with its mining projects and the company’s attempt to redeem itself with this real or exaggerated NGO social work effort did not work.

     

    If indeed Nita Ambani is moving into social work, an ad that copies an already discredited ad is surely not the best vehicle. Also, the figures put up for the number of children fed or schooled or clothed is embarrassingly small for a company the size of Reliance. Even worse, Nita Ambani’s look is so carefully crafted that it looks just that. Also makes her ears look unnaturally large.

     

    Hidden persuasion is fine. But these are attempts at such blatant manipulation that they are not just exploitative, they may not even work.

     

    For those interested in advertising and how it works, try and catch The Gruen Transfer on the Australia Network or Youtube. Hosted by Australian comic Will Anderson, it is funny, incisive, intelligent and hard-hitting. And did I say funny?

     

    All right, I’ll watch the news from tomorrow.

     

  • Once the transaction is complete, Rupert Murdoch-owned Star will become the owner of ESPN's India business

    Star to go solo in sports, buy ESPN from JV

    By Nandini Raghavendra & Ratna Bhushan

     

    Broadcast major Star Group’s 16-year-old equal joint venture with sports broadcaster ESPN is being dissolved with Star buying out ESPN’s stake in the JV, three people familiar with the development said.

     

    Once the transaction is complete, Rupert Murdoch-owned Star will become the owner of ESPN’s India business, the people said. Two of them said the companies were finalising details of the deal and an announcement was likely to be made shortly. They declined to disclose details.

     

    ESPN Software India, which operates ESPN Star Sports’ India operations, generates revenues of about Rs2,500 crore through channels that include Star Sports, ESPN and Star Cricket. ESPN Star Sports owns television broadcast rights for the ICC World Cup Cricket and T20 Champions League.

     

    ESPN’s Singapore office said they did not comment on speculation. A spokesperson for ESS said, “We do not comment on speculations and rumours. ESPN Star Sports continues to run the business as usual. Two partner companies frequently discuss business plans and both the companies, ESPN and News Corp, are proud of the success ESS has made since its inception, and the relationship it shares with fans and business partners. They extend complete assurance for delivering value to our partners as committed by ESS.”

     

    Star India Chief Executive Officer Uday Shankar did not respond to an email and text messages sent to his mobile.

     

    “Star wants a bigger play in the sports broadcasting space,” one of the people quoted earlier said.

     

    “Star’s recent Rs4,000-crore acquisition of the rights to Indian cricket from the Board of Control for Cricket in India, beating rival Sony, are indications of its ambitions in this space,” one of the people quoted earlier said.

     

    It is not yet clear how many of the 200 employees of ESPN, who work for the joint venture, would be retained by Star. An ESPN official, requesting not to be quoted, said employees were uncertain about their future after the deal.

     

    A deal between the two companies could potentially be a complex one as they have a bouquet of advertising deals and cross-sponsorships. But senior executives at two leading media-buying companies, who deal closely with both broadcasting networks, said they did not foresee any impact on advertising deals and sponsorships.

     

    ESPN, Star Sports and Star Cricket either sell airtime and sponsorship inventory independently or as bulk package deals, they said. An analyst from one of the big four audit firms said the battle for the rights to various cricket events will now be fought out between Star and Sony, with the latter holding the rights for Indian Premier League, the 20-overs cricket tournament. ESPN Star Sports was formed as a 50:50 JV between two of the world’s leading cable and satellite broadcasters – Walt Disney, the owner of ESPN, and Rupert Murdoch’s News Corporation – in 1996 for Asia.

     

    It has offices in China, Hong Kong, India, Malaysia, Taiwan and Singapore, and employs more than 650 employees across the region. Star is fast changing gears in India. In the past two months, the broadcaster has launched its second Hindi movie channel under its new brand ‘OK’, called Movies OK. It recently exited its television news business and dissolved its JV with the ABP Group. It also purchased the broadcast rights to Indian cricket for around Rs4,000 crore.

     

    Star seems confident of making money from its cricketing ventures. Speaking to reporters a few days ago, Mr Shankar said the deal for cricket rights would not affect the JV with ESPN. However, the market has been abuzz with the latter’s exit. “Many permutations and combinations of the deal have been worked out, which has taken this long, but ESPN is now fully exiting,” said an official from a firm with knowledge of the deal.

     

    Source: The Economic Times
    Copyright © 2012, Bennett, Coleman & Co. Ltd. All Rights Reserved

     

  • New tournament to feature 21 days of non-stop action, with over 100 hours of matches from February 9-29, 2012

    ESPN STAR Sports to Broadcast Inaugural Bangladesh Premier League

    By A Correspondent

     

    Asia’s top sports content provider, ESPN STAR Sports (ESS) on Thursday announced the broadcast of the much-awaited inauguralBangladeshPremier League (BPL) from February 9-29 on STAR Cricket and STAR Sports.

     

    As the biggest cricketing event inBangladesh, BPL will bring all the glitz and glamour of T20, featuring some of the top names in cricket from around the globe with 21 days of non-stop world-class cricket action and entertainment.

     

    As the definitive rights holder of the best in international sporting events, ESPN STAR Sports will showcase this exciting new T20 event to cricket lovers across Asia, along with Channel 9, which will broadcast the tournament inBangladesh.

     

    With the match action kicking off on February 10, the first edition of theBangladeshPremier League will feature six teams that will play each other twice in a round-robin format of over 33 matches held inChittagongandDhaka. Each team will feature a stellar mix of a leading icon player fromBangladeshalong with current T20 stars and cricketing greats, some of which are listed below.

     

    BarisalBurners Shahriar Nafees Bangladesh- Icon player
    Brad Hodge Australia
    Chris Gayle West Indies
    ChittagongKings Tamim Iqbal Bangladesh- Icon player
    Shoaib Malik Pakistan
    Mutthaya Murlidharan Sri Lanka
    Dwayne Bravo West Indies
    KhulnaRoyal Bengals Shakib Al Hasan Bangladesh- Icon player
    Nasir Hossain Bangladesh
    Herschelle Gibbs South Africa
    Sanath Jayasuriya Sri Lanka
    S Chanderpaul West Indies
    Sylhet Royals Alok Kapali Bangladesh- Icon player
    Naeem Islam Bangladesh
    Kamran Akmal Pakistan
    Darren Sammy West Indies
    Brad Hogg Australia
    DhakaGladiators Mohammad Ashraful Bangladesh- Icon player
    Nazim Uddin Bangladesh
    Saeed Ajmal Pakistan
    Shahid Afridi Pakistan
    Keiron Pollard West Indies
    Duronto Rajshahi Mushfiqur Rahim Bangladesh- Icon player
    Zunaed Siddique Bangladesh
    Abdul Razzaq Pakistan
    Marlon Samuels West Indies

     

     

    “We are delighted to support the expansion of T20 toBangladeshby bringing this exciting new tournament to cricket fans inAsia. As the rights holder for some of the globe’s best cricket events, including ICC World T20, CL T20, India-Australia test matches, ODI tri-series betweenAustralia,IndiaandSri Lanka, and England-Australia ODIs, we are pleased to addBangladeshPremier League to our portfolio of top cricket coverage,” said Joyee Biswas, Director, Programming of ESPN STAR Sports.

     

    “As the first GEC of Bangladesh with a mix of Sports and Entertainment, and the producer of BPL T20, we are pleased to partner with ESPN STAR Sports to bring BPL to cricket lovers and look forward to a long term relationship,” said Enayetur Rahman, Managing Director of Channel 9.

     

    Running from February 9-29, the tournament will feature a mix of 1-2 matches per day. On days when two games are played, the first match will begin at 2pm local time followed by the second match at 6.30pm. In addition to the Icon player fromBangladesh, each team is allowed 9 foreign players, 5 of who can play per match per team.

     

    ESPN STAR Sports showcases an unparalleled variety of premier sports from around the globe featuring some of the most iconic sports events to viewers across 24 countries inAsia. ESPN STAR Sports operates from itsSingaporeheadquarters and has regional offices across six countries in Asia (China,Hong Kong,Taiwan,India,Malaysia,South Korea). ESPN STAR Sports features a comprehensive portfolio of multimedia assets including its 25 television channels, 3 broadband networks, digital content services, and its on-ground Event Management group.