- Sports broadcaster announces new smart TV apps that will allow you to stream live sport without going via Sky or Virgin Media.
- La Liga TV to return as a standalone offer.
The era of Viaplay in the UK has ended – Premier Sports has taken over the sports channels and announced changes to its service.
On Tuesday morning, Viaplay Sports 1 and 2 were rebranded to Premier Sports. Existing subscribers are promised a seamless transition to Premier Sports. The Premier Sports GB website will soon be updated to accept new customer subscriptions.
Current subscribers should check their emails for details of the migration and how to manage your account. Premier Sports says you can use your existing usernames to log in to Premier Sports. Some of the technical changes to your account won’t complete until Wednesday 10th April. It has posted detailed FAQs on its website.
Its only 18 months since the Premier Sports brand disappeared from the UK after being sold to Nordic broadcaster Viaplay. A major change in Viaplay’s financial situation resulted in a hasty exit from the UK. It’s taken four months to complete the transition back to Premier Sports. The sale of the channels back to Dublin-based Premier Sports was approved by Irish competition authorities earlier this year.
Premier Sports to offer La Liga TV
Meanwhile, La Liga TV makes its return as a standalone offering on the new Premier Sports streaming service this week. The 24/7 channel showcasing “All of LA LIGA, All in one place” includes live games, daily studio shows with Spanish football experts, features, documentaries, archive footage, and more.
New smart TV apps
Premier Sports continues to be available on Sky satellite and Virgin Media. But subscribers can sidestep the traditional pay TV platforms via the Premier Sports streaming service.
The new app becomes available on range of devices and platforms, including Android and Apple iOS, Mac and PC, Fire TV and Android TV. There’s also Chromecast support.
Premier Sports has also confirmed its app will be launching on the two biggest smart TV brands in the UK. Dedicated apps for LG and Samsung TVs are “coming soon”, according to the broadcaster.
What’s on Premier Sports?
This April, there is a huge amount of content available for Premier Sports customers including the Scottish Cup Semi Final fixtures including Rangers vs Hearts and Aberdeen vs Celtic, El Clásico as Real Madrid welcomes Barcelona to the Santiago Bernabéu Stadium as well as the business end of the BKT United Rugby Championship season.
Meanwhile, the Scottish League Cup will be rebranded as the Premier Sports Cup when the 2024/25 season kicks off in July.
What happens to Viaplay’s non-sport content?
Viaplay’s films and series will cease to be available to former Viaplay subscribers from 22nd May 2024 (previously Viaplay had given the end date as 21st May). In the future, Viaplay’s non-sport content will pop up on other services in the UK, as it distributes content via ‘partners’. The company hasn’t disclosed more information.
Premier Sports for commercial premises
Commercial Premises (Pubs and clubs) in the UK will continue to access the Premier Sports channels via the Sky Satellite system.
Corporate comment
Richard Sweeney, CEO of Premier Sports, commented:
“We are thrilled to return to the UK market and offer our stellar sports portfolio to a loyal and expanding subscriber base. This represents a new era for Premier Sports in the development of our business, we’re excited to be back across the UK. Customers will continue to see the same great line-up of sports talent leading our coverage, and all our usual unmissable live action sport across domestic and international football, rugby, ice-hockey, motorsport and martial arts.”
Marc Thornham
[Image: Premier Sports]