A summer of sport

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If you thought the 2012 “Summer of Sport” produced some exciting tussles between sporting legends, this year you will witness a sporting battle on a totally different scale. BT Sport’s first strike aims to secure dominance of the game from the kick-off.

Having dug deep to produce the £728 million to secure the rights to 38 Barclays Premier League Matches, BT are announcing the biggest change to sports broadcasting for over 20 years in an impressive 90” commercial created by AMV BBDO. With a team sheet of ‘ambassadors’ that reads like a who’s who of British football and rugby, Jake Humphrey takes the viewer on a tour through all that will be on offer on BT Sport, which launches in August. Top names, including the star presenter of 2012, Claire Balding and innumerable sports stars, feature throughout every cut of the film. With the backdrop of BT’s £1bn investment in the studios at the Olympic Park in Stratford, the public can be left in no doubt about the serious intentions of the BT opening attack.

When Rupert Murdoch bet the farm on securing the commitment of British viewers, through their passion for sport, it took time but paid off with interest. BT’s playbook does not look dissimilar to Sky’s original launch all those years ago, but to dislodge the dominance of Sky and to stick it out for the long game, is going to take nerves of steel and deep pockets. Offering this all for free to BT Broadband customers may just be the tactic that secures the win for BT. But they must be expecting an equally strong counter-attack before the season starts - this game has only just begun.

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