The landscape of Premier League rights could be set for another major shift as a deal that would bring an end to Sky Sports and BT Sport's decade-long battle is on the cards.
DAZN are 'closing in' on a deal to purchase BT Sport, which MEN Sport understands many in the industry see as extremely likely to go ahead.
Such a deal would bring an end to BT's long spell as players in the sports-rights battle, while simultaneously kicking off a new fight between Sky and an extremely fierce competitor.
Launched in 2016 overseas, DAZN has made big waves in the industry already - including beating Sky to Serie A rights in Italy this year.
In the UK, the company is largely orientated around boxing coverage but harbours long-term ambitions of holding Premier League rights - something they already offer in a number of territories around the world.
It was therefore surprising that DAZN didn't object to the bilateral rollover of the current three-year domestic Premier League broadcasting deal with Sky, BT and Amazon without a proper tender process having taken place.
With that agreement, the only way for DAZN to secure Premier League rights within the UK before the end of the current deal in 2025 would be to do a deal with BT - with Sky never going to align with DAZN having been outbid them for Serie A rights in Italy and Champions League rights in Germany.
How this affects the UK consumer remains to be seen, though it's likely that the current BT format would continue, at least initially, with a TV platform rather than being exclusively through DAZN's app and web applications.
For Manchester United and Manchester City fans, as well as the rest of the Premier League, that would, thankfully, not mean another subscription would be required - with DAZN also taking over BT's rights for Champions League coverage.
Long-term though, changes may be afoot - some of which would likely be welcomed by supporters if it meant fewer subscriptions, more access to live sport and better coverage overall.
That would be unlikely to come until 2025 at the earliest, however, as BT's current deal largely orientates around one Premier League match per week, the early kick-off on a Saturday.
