“There’s more than meets the eye to this deal” – Why new partnership with Tencent could be a game changer for the Premier League in China

While the reported value of the Tencent deal is significantly lower than the previous PPTV contract, experts based in China believe the Premier League has much to gain through the large, engaged user base on the Tencent Sports platform.

The Premier League can also earn extra revenue in China this season through selling additional rights.

These include match highlights and live goal clips, with the craze for short-form content in China, in particular among Generation Z, driving the value of such deals.

However, Tencent, like all digital players in China, faces a range of challenges in attracting new paying subscribers to watch the matches.