The President of the Ukrainian Premier League, Yevhen Dykyi, told us a lot about UPL TV: how they managed to de facto assemble a full pool of broadcasts, which broadcasters have been added and may be added, and how to distinguish between the UPL TV of last season and the current one.
Yevhen Dykyi. Photo by V. Rasner"Match and studio broadcasts are just the beginning. New projects are planned, including tour reviews"
- First of all, congratulations: "UPL TV has become a reality, started working and released its first product in the form of six out of eight matches of the opening round of the spring season. How would you rate this first experience?
- I will leave the assessment to the viewers. I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the clubs that have joined our broadcast pool to make the UPL more interesting for potential investors, sponsors and advertisers. Of course, we are still at the beginning of the journey. As I said, the opening rounds are not without certain issues with picture overlaps and sound problems.
But UPL TV also learns and draws conclusions, so the product (by which we mean, of course, high-quality broadcasts and additional studios and programmes) will continue to improve and grow. We have managed to do a lot, but criticism is accepted and carefully studied so that our football is shown and explained in a better way.
- What were the main principles in the formation of UPL TV?
- We immediately determined for ourselves that it should be not only match broadcasts, but also an additional product - studios, programmes, special projects. We wanted to centralise production, unify graphics, and create a permanent circle of commentators and experts. As a result, what we have now - match broadcasts and studios - is the basis around which we can further develop the collection of programmes and special projects.
- We have heard about pre- and post-game broadcasts and studios. What about other products? For example, do you plan to have the same traditional tour previews like Football by UTN, Goal or Football Weekend from previous decades?
- I know what you mean. Yes, a quick, dynamic overview of the tour with fragments of all the matches, standings and scoring tables was discussed and is in the pipeline. The first issues have already been released.
- Currently, you have 34 broadcasting platforms: domestic and international OTT platforms, satellite TV, IPTV, analogue and digital TV in cities such as Kyiv, Kharkiv, Odesa, Kropyvnytskyi, Podilsk, Horishni Plavni, Myrhorod, Pyriatyn, Pryluky. However, traditional TV broadcasts only one telethon, and there are no more specialised TV channels such as TC Football 1/2/3. This is a significant loss in audience, isn't it?
- Firstly, this list is not final. We are open to cooperation and are in talks. Anyone who wants to broadcast the UPL will be able to do so. There are no artificial restrictions. For this season, our first task is to expand the audience as much as possible so that more people can watch the Ukrainian football championship matches.
Of course, the time when fans were unable to watch football from the stands due to the coronavirus pandemic and the full-scale invasion had an impact on, let's say, the habit of watching matches. The situation in the country is such that the news is tough and not about sports, as many people say. This is also understandable. There is also the fact that the UPL has lost some stars, and many of our favourite players and coaches are now playing or working in leading leagues. But in general, there is a positive dynamic now, our clubs have had a good transfer campaign, there is competition and sporting intrigue in the competition.
Therefore, in this regard, I would say that the UPL is already becoming more accessible and open to viewers, and we are all working together to make the audience grow.
"The last word on commentators or experts is not for the clubs or the UPL, but for UPL TV"
- As of today, did you ask potential distribution partners for cooperation, or were there those who approached the UPL and the "pluses" with a proposal to broadcast Ukrainian football?
- Of course, we have done a lot of work with the Distribution and Network Development Department of 1+1 media group, and our partners are to be commended for having so many ways to watch matches and studios. But there are other examples as well.
For example, we had negotiated with the international OTT platform OneFootball before, and they had their doubts and assessments. And literally after the first spring match (LNZ - Kryvbas - 0:3), they approached us with a willingness to broadcast. They became our 34th platform and the fifth international one alongside Setanta Sports, LaLiga+, PANDA Interactive and GoNet. People all over the world can register and watch UPL matches of the 2023/24 season.
- However, Megogo, which broadcast the UPL last year, is not among the potential broadcasters. What is the reason for this: is it the mercantile side of the issue or a possible conflict of interest with one of your distributors?
- I wouldn't want to discuss rumours and assumptions, so I'll just say this: we are in negotiations, we are open to cooperation and will be happy if such a significant platform with a large sports broadcasting case cooperates with us.
- Let's look back at the beginning of the season: an alternative broadcast pool involving Rukh and Minaj, the predictable refusal of Dynamo, Dnipro-1 and Zorya to end their cooperation with Plus for the sake of a single pool, and at one point it seemed that it would be impossible to unite all of this. How did you manage to get 13 of the 16 participants to join the single pool in the spring?
- I think this is the result of fruitful work during the first part of the season - from summer to winter 2023. I don't tend to distinguish between work and division into "friends and foes". Yes, some clubs had their own vision, some decided to go their own way in organising and conducting broadcasts. We understand, accept and respect this. Our task is to create a unified TV pool that will satisfy everyone, and not to force them into it.
The fact that Rukh initially announced its principled desire to develop a single pool played a positive role in the creation and development of UPL TV. I am grateful to Rukh for being one of the ideological inspirers and promoters of the UPL TV idea.
I would also note that in difficult conditions, other clubs also managed to ensure that all matches were broadcast. This was the most important thing - not to deprive the fans of the opportunity to watch football, because with the stands forced to be closed, that is exactly what it would mean.
- Let's clarify right away: who owns UPL TV LLC, based in Vynnyky, Lviv Oblast? Is it the company that is currently broadcasting?
- No, it is not. "UPL TV is a part of the UPL structure, that is, it is fully owned by all the founding clubs of the Ukrainian Premier League.
- The UPL TV commentary staff was determined by the UPL in consultation with the clubs. Is everything correct in this statement?
- Not quite. This is the prerogative of UPL TV.
- Doesn't the fact that the clubs have an influence on this process seem like a conflict of interest to you? After all, clubs do not influence the appointment of referees...
- No, because UPL TV still has the final say in this matter. Neither the clubs nor the UPL, to which the clubs have delegated the authority to hold the tournament, interfere in this creative process.
- Okay, but what about this season? Suppose a viewer doesn't have time to watch the live broadcast, where can they watch the match later?
- There is already an agreement that after the end of matches with a certain time embargo, the full game will be posted on the home team's YouTube channel.
- Won't these recordings, as well as the numerous highlights and reviews that are now abundant on YouTube, be banned?
- The copyright holders of this product are the clubs. Of course, everyone can have their own approach. Speaking about the single pool, its partners will be protected and have the right to post matches and their fragments on pre-agreed resources.
"Thanks to the title sponsor and the help of European leagues, clubs will not spend money on broadcasts"
- Clubs used to make money from TV broadcasts, even if there was a difference between what they received and what they wanted to receive. Last season, the issue became more radical: clubs had to spend money on organising broadcasts. And how is it now?
- Thanks to the UPL's cooperation with colleagues from abroad, as well as the support of the title sponsor of our competitions, vbet, we are relieving the financial burden on the UPL member clubs. In total, due to the assistance of the European leagues and the funds allocated by vbet, the clubs will not have to pay for the production of broadcasts and other products of UPL TV.
- Today, there are a number of statistical platforms - Wyscout, Opta and many others. Do you plan to cooperate with them to provide broadcasts with interesting figures and facts?
- We are currently in talks with statistical platforms and I hope that in the next tour, the viewers will see with whom we have succeeded in this process. But yes, we are working on this to have as many interesting things as possible for our end user, the fan.
- Who directly organises the broadcasts of the matches? Is it Kremen TV, Nahyzhivo, the production company that worked for Setanta and Megogo? Or is it your own production within UPL TV?
- Today, we have four companies that have won the competition. These are 1+1, Engineer-Service, Soft Group and TIK Media Production.
- Okay, then one more question. Right now we have one round a week, and later both PFL leagues, amateurs, will start. There will be national team matches and the Ukrainian Cup. Are you sure that UPL TV will be able to cope with the broadcast, even taking into account the schedule of two rounds a week plus postponements?
- Yes, everything will be fine. We took into account even the busiest parts of the calendar.
"Will the play-offs with the Ukrainian Premier League and the Ukrainian Cup be broadcast in a single pool?"
- The Ukrainian Football Championship is not just the top division. What will happen to the play-offs for the right to play in the UPL, where 13-14 teams of the elite division and 3-4 teams of the first league will play each other? Will they be included in the pool?
- Home matches of UPL member clubs that are part of a single pool will be broadcast. Other matches - by agreement.
- Unfortunately, many fans were unable to watch the Oleksandriya vs Shakhtar match (at least the first half). The UPL even issued a joint statement with Setanta Sports regarding the partial disruption of the broadcast. What happened there and was it a problem for only one platform?
- Setanta Sports was unable to receive the signal from UPL TV for technical reasons. We have worked through this situation, and our partners will try to avoid a repeat of such a failure.
- On the sidelines, they say that OTT platforms cannot receive more than one signal from UPL TV. At the same time, we have constant air alerts, and there may be other force majeure events. Will the same thing happen in the future?
- OTT platforms have already resolved this issue. They receive a sub-channel from us. Unfortunately, a cable linear TV channel cannot broadcast several matches at the same time. That is why, in the event of a shift in the programme due to an air raid, the cable TV channel will only broadcast live the next match that is scheduled. The interrupted/postponed match that has been moved in the schedule will be available to watch live on OTT platforms that support the broadcast of additional sub-channels.
- Will the UPL newcomers who get the right to play in the top division in the summer be automatically included in a single pool?
- Clubs own the rights to broadcast their home matches in accordance with Ukrainian law. So, we will look for common interests and reach an agreement. Once again, a single pool should be attractive to all participants.
- Your predecessors held a tender for the sale of centralised rights and were unsuccessful. Do you intend to look for a single exclusive broadcaster this summer?
- At the moment, our task is to expand the audience and develop UPL TV. So, we are not talking about a tender yet. However, we will have something to offer - foreign rights, highlights for TV channels and online projects, our individual programmes, and much more. And if we see that holding a tender for the sale of centralised rights will help raise more funds and it will suit the clubs, then of course we will consider this possibility.
P.S. There are still no answers to several questions:
- A single pool of broadcasting rights implies not only revenue from those wishing to broadcast, but also the emergence of new sponsors. What packages are available in the UPL: a general sponsor, an official partner, what else?
- Who is the chief director, general producer, and head of production of UPL TV at the Ukrainian Premier League?
- In the announcements and presentations of your production, the domain address upl.tv appears. But there is no such website. What are you going to do about it? Perhaps in the future, this is where the eco-system of the paid platform with match archives and all special projects will be closed?
- Over the years, UPL matches have been broadcast by different TV channels, even in recent years there have been several of them. Is it possible to create a single archive where you can watch matches from different years?
- What will happen to the semi-finals and finals of the Ukrainian Cup? I understand that the UAF will act as the organiser, but still the UPL clubs will play there, including those that are part of a single pool...
Artur Valerko
