Stunning overhead strike sees Leicester win
Leicester beat Newcastle 1-nil at home to extend their lead at the top of the EPL table.
PT1M16S 620 349Foxtel will broadcast European football direct through its service in a deal with beIN Media Group that will be seen as an attempt by the pay-TV giant to retain customers unhappy at its loss of English Premier League rights to Optus.
Foxtel and beIN have announced the launch of three beIN Sports high definition channels available to Foxtel sports subscribers at no extra cost to the Foxtel sport pack, boosting the pack's offering from nine to 12 sports channels.
Existing subscribers to beIN Sports' $20 per month channel on Foxtel who also take Foxtel's sports pack will no longer have to pay extra for beIN coverage. beIN acquired Setanta Sports Australia in 2014.
Lionel Messi of Barcelona and Alex Iwobi of Arsenal compete for the ball during the UEFA Champions League, which will be available direct of Foxtel. Photo: Richard Heathcote
Foxtel, which is under pressure from growing competition including from subscription video-on-demand services led by Netflix, said the deal reinforced its position as "the home of live sport".
As part of its response Foxtel will launch beIN Sports 1, 2 and 3 on May 15, in time for the UEFA Europa League Final on May 19 and the UEFA Champions League Final on May 29, which will both be screened live.
Foxtel is trying to position itself as Australia's 'home of live sport'. Photo: Fox Sports
beIN Sports will also broadcast all 51 games of the UEFA EURO 2016 tournament live from June 11th.
beIN Sports also has coverage of other European domestic leagues - La Liga, Serie A, Ligue 1 and Bundeslig - as well as South American football and European Rugby Union.
Richard Freudenstein, outgoing Foxtel chief executive, said: "The channels will be compulsory viewing for fans of international football and rugby and complement the already great line-up of sports channels on Foxtel."
Yousef Al-Obaidly, Deputy CEO of beIN Media Group, said the new channels were a key component of the company's Asia Pacific presence.
Foxtel is owned by Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation and Telstra.
As revealed by Fairfax Media, News Corp and Telstra are hoping to merge Foxtel with News' Fox Sports before a proposed $8 billion sharemarket float, which would involve Telstra selling most of its stake in a combined business, in the second half of 2016.
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