Virgin Media TV have secure rights to broadcast UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League and the new UEFA Europa Conference League for the 2021-24 seasons in Ireland. Virgin Media will have first pick Champions League fixtures on Wednesday nights, the rights to every UEFA Europa League game and the final. They also have UEFA Super Cup games. The new Europa Conference League will has have its debut on Virgin Media TV. The agreement comes under a sub-licence from Saran Media Group. RTÉ will have first choice on Tuesday Night for the Champions League and its final, while both Live Score and BT will also broadcast each of the games.
On line streaming and sports scoring service LiveScore have replaced Virgin Media as the rights holders to 137 UEFA Champions League matches. RTÉ had already announced its securing of Tuesday Night games along with highlights and the final. The new broadcast/streaming rights will begin with the 2021/2022. Virgin Media announced a few weeks ago that it had pulled out of the bidding process.
The return of sporting fixtures in October has result in a boom for Irish Broadcasters. 48.5% of viewers tuned to Irish Broadcasters in October 2020, the highest rating for Irish channels since February when most sporting fixtures came to an end due to COVID-19 restrictions. RTÉ\'s average share of the audience was up 11% month-on-month, on an annual basis it was down 2% in October 2020. Virgin Media was up 6% month-on-month, and up 20% year-on-year. The return of sport and continued corona coverage helping them retrieve something from a summer lacking sport. Meanwhile the sports wars between eir and Virgin Media have seen both sports channels see their shares fall on an annual basis. TG4 increased its audience share by 15% month-on-month, but saw a 53% increase compared to October 2019.
Ireland\'s Sam Bennett has taken home the Green jersey from the Tour De France. The Tipperary man took the Yellow Jersey in the 10th and final stages of the race. Slovenia\'s Tadej Pogacar took the top place overall bring him the Yellow Jersey, having won 3 stages over the course of the race, stages 9, 15 and 20.
The Minister for Media, Tourism, Arts, Culture, Sport and the Gaeltacht, Catherine Martin, has announced the membership of the Arts and Culture Recovery Task Force. Martin previously announce that RTÉ\'s former head of Radio, Clare Duignan, would lead the taskforce. Singer and Songwriter Denise Chaila and fiddle player Marin Hayes will join the taskforce long with 15 other members who will be selected by various Arts organisations.
The Minister for Media, Tourism, Arts, Culture, Sport and the Gaeltacht, Catherine Martin, T.D., today (September 10th, 2020) announced the setting up of an Arts and Culture Recovery Taskforce. Martin has put RTÉ\'s former Executive Director of Radio to lead the Taskforce. Clare Duignan has held key leadership roles at RTÉ for over 20 years, and since leaving the broadcaster has been a member of the Board of The Irish Times, The Chester Beatty, Fáilte Irleand, Business to Arts and Ireland Reaching Out. The composition of the taskforce will be announce in the coming days.