It marks the next logical step for BT Sport as well as the broader transformation of BT's Consumer business. Once launched, it'll become a hugely exciting new premium sports offering for customers. And, as chair of our Joint Venture with Warner Bros. Discovery, I'm pleased with the progress we’re making.

I'm also really proud of our teams who have been working at pace to create a more efficient platform that'll see this new sports brand in the UK and Ireland brought to life for the first time before the start of 2023/24 football season. In just a few months, they have done an amazing job under the leadership of Andrew Georgiou (board member of the Joint Venture and President and Managing Director, Warner Bros. Discovery Sports Europe), responding to some really significant changes.

We've maintained what is a premium viewing experience for millions of customers, despite a period of transition after we completed the transaction to combine the assets of BT Sport and Eurosport UK last September. And we've given customers more, just like we promised, with BT Sport customers able to activate a discovery+ Entertainment & Sport subscription at no extra cost earlier this month.
 

What can our viewers expect?

Shortly before the 2023/24 football season, discovery+ will become the streaming home for sports fans who can enjoy a subscription that includes TNT Sports, Eurosport and entertainment in one destination. BT Sport subscribers already enjoy complimentary access to discovery+ which includes Eurosport’s streaming offer and wide range of entertainment programming.

Together, this provides one of the most extensive line-ups of live sports coverage for fans in the UK and Ireland - including the Olympic Games, the Premier League, UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, Premiership Rugby, MotoGP, UFC, Boxing, WWE, tennis Grand Slams, cycling Grand Tours and the winter sports season.

The TNT Sports name already has a strong association with premium live sport in other territories and under Warner Bros. Discovery’s family of brands. This includes being home to top-level domestic and European football in a number of countries in Latin America, while live sport has been a longtime staple on the TNT network in the U.S, including the NBA, NHL and NCAA.

Our intention with this Joint Venture was always to launch a new brand for amazing live sport and bring it together with an entertainment offering from Warner Bros. Discovery that will ultimately be great for our customers. And it’s thanks to the great content like this that we’re seeing record numbers of people watching, with pretty much all viewing figures up year on year.
 

Building for the future

From BT Group’s side, building the networks that can sustain that growth is one of the most important things that we can do. Only last Wednesday we saw a record peak for broadband traffic on our network – 29.11Tbps – driven by the streaming of two Champions League games together with Arsenal versus Man City in the Premier League and a new Call of Duty release. That’s more than 10 per cent higher than the previous peak we saw just a few months ago.

The network demand is massive. And that's why it's so important for us to keep investing in our fixed and mobile networks. We’re rolling out our full fibre network at record pace, and we’re committed to delivering 5G coverage on our EE mobile network anywhere in the UK by 2028.

In the meantime, we will continue to work on the integration of our tech platforms with Warner Bros. Discovery, ensuring a seamless experience for customers while getting ready to go big for the start of the new football season.

We are really proud of the progress we've made together, working at pace to create a more efficient platform. There are so many opportunities that this next chapter will bring for both our teams and – most importantly – our viewers on TNT Sports.

Follow me on Twitter and Instagram @marcallera

BT Sport will remain the home of top flight European football until 2027, it was confirmed today.  BT have secured the rights to the majority of the UEFA Champions League games, plus all the UEFA Europa League and the UEFA Europa Conference League exclusively live, for a further three seasons, including highlights and in-match clips.  BT Sport will continue to make the finals available for all to watch. 

BT Sport will show the new format of the three European competitions from 2024, with 12 more teams, more matches than ever before, plus the introduction of an additional “knockout-playoff” round. 

In each competition, 36 teams will play in a single league format, with those finishing 1-8 progressing to the Round of 16, teams placed 9-24 contesting the additional knockout round, and the bottom 12 teams exiting the competition and no longer dropping down into the UEL and UECL respectively, introducing more jeopardy and must-win knock out matches. 

The expanded qualification system opens up the possibility of a fifth English team in the UCL and guarantees Scottish participation in the UCL and UEL. 

Last season the UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League and UEFA Europa Conference League were a huge success on BT Sport with a 37 per cent increase in UEFA Champions League viewer hours, the final between Liverpool and Real Madrid available for all to watch in the UK, and a record breaking 12.6m people tuning in across all platforms.   

Marc Allera, Chief Executive of BT’s Consumer Division, said “BT Sport continues to be the home of the UEFA Club Competitions until 2027 and we are extremely proud to have the privilege of twelve years of broadcasting one of the most exciting competitions in the world.  It is fantastic news for our viewers that from 2024 we will be able to show more games than ever before live and exclusive on BT Sport.” 

Guy-Laurent Epstein, UEFA Marketing Director, said: “We are delighted to be extending our partnership with BT until 2027. BT has been a long-standing UEFA club competition partner since 2015, where it has applied industry leading broadcast expertise to European club football. Throughout 2024-27 BT will broadcast more live matches than ever before, which will be supplemented by its exceptional array of original programming.”

The costs of the rights awarded to BT Sport is c. £305m per annum.  BT expects to pay a deposit of c.£61m in July 2022.  Following the move of BT Sport into the Joint Venture being created by BT Group plc and Warner Bros. Discovery, which is expected to be complete by the end of 2022, the JV would pay the rights costs of c. £305m per annum less the deposit.  The planned JV is subject to customary closing conditions, including CMA approval.

Our financial outlook for FY23 remains unchanged.  Following completion of the sports joint venture with Warner Bros. Discovery, we expect Group revenues to reduce by £0.5bn-£0.6bn per annum relative to FY22. We do not expect a material impact on our FY23 adjusted EBITDA outlook. We will confirm the full impact on all our outlook metrics following completion.

Ends

Notes to editors: 

The timing of the 6 cash payments covering the rights costs of c. £305m per annum, less the deposit, by the proposed JV will be: 

·                  August 2024 c.£92m 

·                  February 2025 c.£153m 

·                  August 2025 c.£153m 

·                  February 2026 c.£153m 

·                  August 2026 c.£153m 

·                  February 2027 c.£153m 

That’s one big reason why Safer Internet Day is more important than ever. It provides an annual focus for something that should be front of mind every single day in our digital-first world: promoting the safe, responsible and positive use of digital technology for children and young people across the UK.

The theme for this year is, 'All fun and games? Exploring respect and relationships online', spotlighting how crucial it is to stimulate conversations about online safety between children and their parents and carers, especially as the age of those accessing technology becomes younger and younger.

A focus on gaming and interactive services also provides an opportunity to ensure that young people are listened to and supported when using these platforms, and to celebrate their role in creating a safer internet.

Being PhoneSmart

Gamification is an incredibly effective and engaging tool for learning, an approach we used with the EE PhoneSmart Licence. An online programme in partnership with Internet Matters, PhoneSmart helps children getting their first phone learn how to stay safe and be kind online. It’s also free to everyone, on any network – not just EE customers – because access to these tools is an essential part of creating meaningful change and because we believe everyone should have the skills they need for a brighter future.

The next phase of the PhoneSmart campaign is designed to support parents and guardians in navigating the world of video streaming – supporting their children to stay in control of what they share online and who they share it with.

Paving the way for change

Our research shows that nearly 1 in 3 (31%) of us have witnessed online hate whilst gaming, with 1 in 5 (20%) of online gamers having personally experienced it. As a parent of avid gamers, that’s not something I want my children to worry about when enjoying their time online.

Education paves the way for change, yet 43% of all those who play online games say they don’t know how to deal with online hate if they experience it. We have a duty to help provide people with the knowledge they need to take a stand against hate.

That idea is at the core of BT and EE’s Hope United campaign, formed to make a stand against hate speech online, educating people on the effects of online hate and how to be a part of the solution. The campaign brought the UK’s top footballers together to shine a light on the issue of online hate and the digital skills needed to tackle it.

This year, we’re taking Hope United to amateur football clubs across the UK with a roadshow and online workshop. We’ll also be adding the Hope United kit into the FIFA 22 video game - so not only can players show what side they’re on by wearing the shirt in the real world, their FIFA team can too.

Standing together

Through the BT Skills for Tomorrow programme which aims to help 25 million people in the UK make the most of the digital world, campaigns like Hope United help us make real change; educating young people, empowering them, and giving them the tools to share our message: hope can beat hate if we all stand together.

But perhaps the most important message to get across is that words can be impactful and powerful. The effects of online abuse and hate speech should never be underestimated; hate speech online can have a real impact on someone's life.

We want to enable everyone to stand against online hate. We want everyone to feel empowered to do that in their favourite games, and we want everyone to have the skills to do something about online hate wherever they see it, because hate has no place in any game.

Follow me on Twitter and Instagram @marcallera

AriSports has been crowned the winner of Innovate 21, BT Sport’s search for exciting new sports broadcast experiences from entrepreneurs, creatives and start-ups.

AriSports impressed the judges with its digital prediction platform, the brainchild of co-founders Rassim and Djewed Hariz. It allows football fans to predict on-pitch events, earning points in the process and competing against friends. It includes a fantasy trading element, where fans can collect and own unique digital cards of their favourite football players. The cards can increase in value, depending on the player’s real-life performances and correct predictions from the owner of the card. As the winner of Innovate 21, AriSports will now have the opportunity to work with BT Sport to develop its technology for future use.

This is the third time BT Sport has backed a search for new viewer innovations in recent years from small businesses. Since winning a 2018 BT competition, Sceenic worked with BT Sport to support last year’s launch of Watch Together service on the BT Sport App. Meanwhile, the winner of a 2016 BT competition, Seenit, enabled fans to send in video reports from stadia around the country as part of BT Sport’s Premier League Tonight show.

AriSports was one of four companies to make it to a final where it presented its innovation to a panel of experts led by Jamie Hindhaugh, chief operating officer, BT Sport. Those involved in identifying both a shortlist and winner included journalist and technology expert Lucy Hedges, Matt Stagg, BT Sport director of mobile strategy, plus BT Sport presenters Brian O’Driscoll, Suzi Perry and Robbie Savage.

Jamie Hindhaugh, chief operating officer, BT Sport, said: “We were extremely impressed by the quality and ingenuity of the innovations on display at the Innovate 21 final. I would like to congratulate AriSports on being crowned worthy winners. Its proposal is an ambitious platform that will offer fans an immersive experience and we look forward to working with them in helping harness its potential.”

Rassim Hariz, chairman, AriSports, said: “Special thanks to BT Sport for this great award, we look forward to working with their team. The process was very competitive and we are honoured to be the winners of Innovate 21. For us, it has been two years in the making and I would like to thank all our technical, product development and business development team. Working with BT Sport, and knowing their innovation track record, is fully aligned with our identity and ambitions in applying our world-first technology for immersive fantasy gaming on live content.”

BT has been at the heart of sports broadcasting innovation over recent years, details of which can be seen at btsport.com/innovates:

• Last season, BT Sport and EE teamed up to launched Matchday Experience on the BT Sport App, offering fans the most immersive sports viewing experience anywhere in the UK, powered by EE’s number one 5G network. Features include Watch Together - the only service in the UK allowing fans to watch, see and chat with three other friends, alongside any BT Sport broadcast, thanks to a split-screen interface.
• BT Sport was the first broadcaster to show live content in 4K and UHD in 2015 and the first to adopt Dolby Atmos in 2016. BT Sport has also embraced social media, being the first to show the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League finals on YouTube and showing content such as BT Sport Score live for free on Twitter and Facebook.
• In 2019, BT Sport collaborated with BT’s Media & Broadcast arm to broadcast the world’s first live 8K test broadcast, into the IBC exhibition in Amsterdam.
• In 2018 BT Sport and EE successfully carried out the world’s first live broadcast over 5G using remote production, delivering a two-way transmission from Wembley Stadium to London’s ExCeL exhibition centre.

The FA Disability Cup will return to St George’s Park on Saturday 17 and Sunday 18 July, with BT Sport providing coverage over the weekend, the first time the Cup has been broadcast live.

The 2021 FA Disability Cup, the fifth edition of the competition, will see five cup finals scheduled across the weekend, delivered by The FA in partnership with a range of impairment-specific organisations. The Cup is the largest competition of its kind in this country, giving players within impairment-specific football a national competition of their own, complete with dreams of reaching St. George’s Park for finals weekend. BT Sport’s coverage will be presented by Alex Brooker, presenter of Channel 4’s The Last Leg, five-time Paralympic champion Hannah Cockcroft and, BT Sport presenter Jules Breach.

Supporting BT’s lead partnership with the four Home Nation Football Associations, which aims to boost support for disability football, BT Sport’s coverage will be available for anyone to watch without a subscription via BT Sport’s website (btsport.com), its App for mobiles, tablets, smart TVs, media adapters and games consoles, plus, its Facebook channel (facebook.com/btsport). Highlights coverage will also be available on Channel 4, on 25 July, with details announced soon.

The competition will be the most accessible live broadcast of a football match taking place in the UK to date. On each day, live coverage of all the finals will feature on three BT Sport channels with each offering different accessibility features. BT Sport 3 will feature enhanced Audio Description delivered by an expert based at St George’s Park. In addition, BT Sport Extra 1 will carry British Sign Language, with sub-titles available on BT Sport 1*. A fourth channel, BT Sport Ultimate, will provide coverage in up to 4K HDR picture quality.

Next season, BT Sport will trial the inclusion of these accessibility features around several sports. BT is committed to making these features available as standard for all of its live coverage in the future. More details on how to watch, including channel information and how to access all the accessibility features are available at btsport.com/fadisabilitycup.

How to watch

• BT TV, Sky, Virgin Media customers: BT Sport Extra 1 (British Sign Language), BT Sport 3 (Enhanced Audio Description), BT Sport 1 (standard feed with sub-titles), BT Sport Ultimate (standard feed, no sub-titles. Channel not available on Sky)**.

• BTSport.com + BT Sport App***: following channels available to subscribers and non-subscribers - BT Sport Extra 1 (British Sign Language), BT Sport 3 (Enhanced Audio Description), BT Sport 1 (standard feed, no sub-titles). BT Sport Ultimate (standard feed, no sub-titles, available to subscribers only)***.

• Facebook (facebook.com/btsport) – BT Sport 1 (standard feed, no sub-titles) available to all.

Live schedule on BT Sport

Saturday 17 July

10.30am to 12.30pm: POWERCHAIR FINAL - Aspire PFC v West Bromwich Albion PFC

12.30pm to 3pm: CEREBRAL PALSY FINAL - North East & Yorkshire v CP North West

3pm to 5.15pm: PARTIALLY SIGHTED FINAL - Scorpions Futsal Club v Birmingham Futsal

Sunday 18 July

10.30am to 12.30pm: AMPUTEE FINAL - Peterborough United Amputees v Portsmouth Amputees

12.30pm to 2.45pm: BLIND FINAL - RNC Hereford v Merseyside Blind & VI FC

In addition, BT is using its FA partnerships to provide fans with new disability football content leading up to the competition, through a new mini-series Para Football Adventures, presented by Brooker alongside influencer and Merseyrail FC striker Chelcee Grimes. All five episodes debut on Saturday July 10 at 6.30pm on BT Sport 1, and will individually air as short minute episodes in the week prior to the Cup taking place.  The series sees Grimes and Brooker explore:

• England: CP Football - the story of the successful CP England Football team through players Giles Moore and Harry Baker.

• Northern Ireland: Powerchair football – the country is a relative newcomer to Powerchair football and in just five years has qualified for the 2022 Powerchair World Cup in Australia.

• Wales: Deaf Futsal - Alex and Chelcee learn the rules of Futsal and discover the issues around communication within this form of the game.

• Scotland: Amputee Football - how amputee football has taken off in Scotland in recent years through the Amputee Football Association Scotland.

Baroness Sue Campbell, The FA’s Director of Women's Football and the organisation’s strategic lead for disability football, said: “This year’s FA Disability Cup promises to be the most exciting yet, with some of the nation’s most successful grassroots teams set to compete to be crowned national champions in their respective disciplines. Disability football is a fast growing and important format of the game so to have all of the action broadcast live on BT Sport is fantastic news and will showcase the talent of all those involved, as well as inspiring newcomers to the sport.”

Jamie Hindhaugh, chief operating officer, BT Sport, said: “BT is proud of its rich heritage in supporting disability sport, having been a founding partner of the British Paralympic Association, sponsor of the 2012 Paralympics and backing dozens of disability sports projects through the BT and Premier League Disability Programme. We are looking forward to bringing fans highly accessible coverage of the 2021 FA Disability Cup, which is set to advance BT’s vision with the four Home Nation Football Associations to provide new opportunities for everyone to enjoy the benefits of football.”

David Clarke, Director of Services at the Royal National Institute of Blind People (RNIB) and England’s record goal scorer in blind football, said: “At RNIB, we are delighted that audio description is coming home for blind and partially sighted football fans. Previously, the best way to feel part of the action was to be in the stadium, but with BT Sport providing live audio description for all five finals of the FA Disability Cup, fans with sight loss can enjoy an enhanced listening experience. We hope this will demonstrate what is possible and inspire other broadcasters to consider offering live audio description for more of their sports output so blind or partially sighted fans never miss that crucial moment, whether it’s a vital goal, winning shot or game-changing action.”

In the 2019 edition of the competition, North West Scorpions won the Partially Sighted Final, while another North West team - CP North West FC - were winners in the Cerebral Palsy Final. In the Powerchair Final, Aspire FC were victorious, while Everton Amputees FC lifted the Amputees Cup and Merseyside Blind & VI FC clinched the Blind Cup.

The FA will be hosting the Amputee cup final in partnership with England Amputee Football Association, the Blind cup final in partnership with the National Blind Football League, the Cerebral Palsy cup final in partnership with CP Sport, the Partially Sighted cup final in partnership with the National Partially Sighted Football League and finally, the Powerchair cup final in partnership with the Wheelchair Football Association.

Ends

Notes:

*Sub-titles available to BT TV, Sky and Virgin Media viewers. See these links for more info:

• BT TV

• Virgin Media

• Sky

**BT Sport Ultimate is available as an additional subscription service to BT Sport customers via BT TV, Virgin Media and via the app for small and large screens. It is not available on the Sky satellite platform or btsport.com. For more information visit our website.

***for a full list of the large screen platforms that the BT Sport App is available on, visit our website.

Instant replays, slow motion and the ability to rewind live TV are fans’ favourite innovations in sports broadcast, according to new research. Meanwhile, teletext and waiting for Match of the Day highlights on Saturdays make more fans nostalgic than any other aspect of sports broadcast.

Commissioned by BT Sport as it launches Innovate 21, a new competition seeking the next big tech innovation in sports broadcast, research of 2,000 sport fans across the UK examined fans views on tech innovations across the world of sport – both on and off the pitch, from developments in how sport is broadcast, to innovations on the field of play. It found 76% of fans believe tech has a positive impact on sports TV while also revealing football is the sport most fans (49%) believe is best utilising tech to enhance sports viewing.

Turning to fans’ views on recent tech innovations around sports broadcast, 360° camera views (26%) and spider/drone cameras (26%) are the most popular recent innovations, followed by live streaming sports on the go via mobile (22%) and the introduction of 4K and HDR picture quality (21%).

In terms of fans’ take on the best overall innovations on the pitch from athletes, authorities and teams, goal-line technology (32%), Hawk-Eye (27%) and photo finish imagery (26%) were deemed the best enhancements by fans. When asked for their least favourite innovations, football’s video assistant referees (VAR) system was voted for by more fans (31%) than any other tech.

Overall, the study found that 74% of fans believe technology has made sport more accessible to a larger audience, with people regularly watching sport on a PC or laptop (53%) or soaking up the action on their smart phones (41%). More than six in 10 also believe tech innovation has made watching sport a more sociable experience.

BT Sport has launched Innovate 21 to find exciting new ideas, technology and services spanning the entire sports broadcast chain from entrepreneurs, creatives and start-ups. The competition will provide one lucky winner with the opportunity to work with BT to develop their idea for future use. BT Sport has a rich history of providing entrepreneurs with opportunities to be at the heart of innovation. Since winning the 2018 BT Infinity Lab competition, Sceenic has worked with BT Sport to support last year’s launch of Watch Together on the BT Sport App. More details on how to enter are available at http://www.bt.com/innovate21.

Jamie Hindhaugh, chief operating officer, BT Sport, said: “There have been many impressive tech developments in the worlds of sport and broadcasting, and this research has highlighted the importance of tech for sports viewers. Sport and sports broadcasting do not stand still though, and we are committed to remaining at the forefront of innovation. This is why we’ve launched Innovate 21 to create the opportunity for someone to make a game changing mark on the world of sport broadcasting.”

BEST RECENT TECH INNOVATIONS IN SPORTS BROADCASTING*

1. Spider/drone cameras (26%)

2. 360° viewer-controlled cameras (26%)

3. Live streaming sport to mobiles (22%)

4. 4K / HDR picture quality (21%)

5. Post-match video analysis (20%)

BEST EVER OVERALL TECH INNOVATIONS IN SPORTS BROADCASTING*

1. Instant replays (33%)

2. Rewinding live TV (32%)

3. Slow motion replays (31%)

4. On-screen time/score graphics (16%)

5. Spider/drone cameras /// 4K pictures /// 360° cameras /// (14%)

BEST TECH INNOVATIONS BY ATHLETES, TEAMS, SPORTS AUTHORITIES**

1. Goal-line technology (32%)

2. Hawk-Eye (27%)

3. Photo finish technology (26%)

4. Prosthetic devices for disabled athletes (24%)

5. Under soil heating (23%)

WORST TECH INNOVATIONS BY ATHLETES, TEAMS, SPORTS AUTHORITIES**

1. Video Assistant Referee (VAR) (31%)

2. eSports – competitive video gaming (16%)

3. Fantasy football apps (14%)

4. Cavity backs – used in golf to help make misfired shots more forgiving (10%)

5. Voice activated assistants (10%)

(*proportion of those surveyed who selected the innovation as best recent sports broadcast innovation)

(**proportion of those surveyed who selected the innovation as best/worst)

BT has been at the heart of sports broadcasting innovation over recent years:

• Last October, BT Sport and EE teamed up to launched Matchday Experience on the BT Sport App, offering fans the most immersive sports viewing experience anywhere in the UK, powered by EE’s number one 5G network. Features include Watch Together - the only service in the UK allowing fans to watch, see and chat with three other friends, alongside any BT Sport broadcast, thanks to a split-screen interface.

• BT Sport was the first broadcaster to show live content in 4K and UHD in 2015 and the first to adopt Dolby Atmos in 2016. BT Sport has also embraced social media, being the first to show the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League finals on YouTube and showing content such as BT Sport Score live for free on Twitter and Facebook.

• In 2019, BT Sport collaborated with BT’s Media & Broadcast arm to broadcast the world’s first live 8K test broadcast, into the IBC exhibition in Amsterdam.

• In 2018 BT Sport and EE successfully carried out the world’s first live broadcast over 5G using remote production, delivering a two-way transmission from Wembley Stadium to London’s ExCeL exhibition centre.

Ends

Notes to editors

The research was conducted by One Poll.com between the dates of 28th April to 5th May 2021 with 2,000 UK adults who watch sport on TV or attend matches / events.

BT Sport has today announced plans for the exciting prospect of ‘Club 2020’ as the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League returns on 5^th August.

Club 2020 will provide fans with some much-needed knockout tournament fever with 26 games in just 19 days. All games will be broadcast across the BT Sport network with Gary Lineker, Jake Humphrey and James Richardson hosting all the action and support programming live from the BT Sport Studio.

To celebrate the return of European football BT Sport is launching a new show, Club 2020 Daily with James Richardson, which will be broadcast on TV, free on the BT Sport app, online and on the BT Sport YouTube channel. Not only will the show investigate the previous night’s action and look ahead to the day’s matches, the team will also explore the culture around the matches with live chats with UEFA Champions League and Europa League legends.

BT Sport will make both finals available for anyone to watch for free on btsport.com, the BT Sport App and BT Sport YouTube page as the biggest games of the year take place. BT Sport will also provide dynamic crowd noise as an option for viewers from the quarter-final stage onwards.

The festival of football kicks off on 5^th August, with Manchester United taking on LASK at 8pm live on BT Sport 2HD. The following day both Rangers and Wolves feature, with Rangers looking to overturn a two-goal deficit to Leverkusen on BT Sport 3HD at 5.15pm and on BT Sport 2HD at 7.30pm Wolves will be hoping to use their away goal advantage from the first leg to book their spot in the quarter-finals.

On 7^th August UEFA Champions League football returns with two scintillating fixtures as Juventus look to overturn a one-goal deficit against Lyon on BT Sport 3HD from 7.30pm, while favourites Manchester City take on the most coveted team in the European football as they face Real Madrid over on BT Sport 2 HD at 7.00pm. Chelsea vs Bayern Munich will be broadcast on 8^th August from 7.00pm live on BT Sport 2HD with The Blues looking for a miracle after their 3-0 home defeat to Bayern in February.

The quarter-final stage of the UEFA Champions League will follow the Round of 16 fixtures between the 12^th and 15^th August, with the semi-finals on the 18^th August before the final showpiece from the Estádio da Luz on Sunday 23^rd August.

The UEFA Europa League’s Round of 16 second legs will take place on the 5^th and 6^th August with the quarter-finals following four days later on the 10^th and 11^th August. The final four will face off in the semi-finals on the 16^th August before the last two teams in the competition fight it out for the trophy in Lisbon at 7pm on Friday 21^st August on BT Sport 2HD.

Simon Green, head of BT Sport said “August is shaping up to be a fantastic month for football fans with a festival of top-class European action. Every game will be available to watch live for BT Sport viewers plus our brand new show, Club 2020 Daily with popular host James Richardson, which will be available to watch for free and will include special on-location features as well as all the latest news, match highlights and topical chat.”

Fans can catch all the action exclusively live on BT Sport and sign up contract-free with a BT Sport Monthly Pass for just £25 per month. For more info visit bt.com/sport

BT has today unveiled its 4-3-3 football partnership strategy to use technology, innovation and digital skills in footballing communities across the UK to help change the lives of millions of players, coaches and fans.

In partnership with each of the four Home Nation Football Associations, BT will help break down barriers to playing or supporting the beautiful game by creating a para and disability innovation hub; launching The FA Playmaker, an official FA entry-level online course; and boosting support for men’s, women’s, para and disability football from grassroots to elite levels.

BT’s commitment will launch a number of initiatives and projects over the five-year agreement with each of The FA, Scottish FA, Irish FA and FA of Wales to deliver against specific goals and commitments for their communities.

BT & DISABILITY FOOTBALL: Inspiring the next generation of disability players BT will combine the power of its technology, innovation and partnerships and aim to increase national support for Home Nations teams.

Project Swift: A first of its kind research programme to enable those who currently can’t play, to play.

• Millions of people are fortunate enough to grow up playing football and dreaming of playing for their country, but for some disability groups there isn’t a form of the game they can play.

• Working with leading tech innovation hub, Plexal, within the Here East supercampus, as well as Disability Rights UK and other experts from the accessibility and sport communities, BT will design and develop a new format of disability football for those who can’t play with their bodies, but could potentially play with their minds.

• Through this ambitious research project, BT’s aim is to introduce new technology concepts into the game, helping those currently excluded from competitive sport to play, with the ultimate ambition of enabling the very best to potentially play one day for their country.

Content & programming: Raising the profile of Para and disability football

• BT to invest in the creation of inspiring para documentaries and films for BT Sport. The first documentary has been commissioned and will focus on blind football.

• This year BT Sport will broadcast the Disability Cup, the first time is had been broadcast live, providing disability football with a live TV broadcast platform.

CONNECTING GRASSROOTS FOOTBALL CLUBS: Break down barriers to improve digital, education and footballing skills in communities across the UK, creating a network of hundreds of grassroots football clubs across the Home Nations.

The FA Playmaker Partnership:

• BT will be the official partner of The FA’s revolutionary new digital entry-level football course – The FA Playmaker – which launches this Spring.

• The FA Playmaker will be free to sign up and available to anyone over 14 interested in taking a more active volunteer role in grassroots football, with a focus on encouraging a more diverse representation of people into football coaching.

• The aim will be to create 100,000 FA Playmakers by 2024 and equip them with the skills, knowledge and confidence to support licenced coaches make safe, fun and inclusive football happen in our grassroots game.

• The course is made up of five online modules and will take approximately four and a half hours to complete, with learners having the options afterwards to become FA licensed by taking their FA Safeguarding Children Workshop (FA SCW), FA Introduction to First Aid in Football (FA IFAiF), and their DBS.

• The FA Playmaker licence will qualify participants for leading roles in grassroots football and within FA participation initiatives – such as Wildcats, Just Play and FA affiliated football.

• BT to offer incentive scheme to encourage thousands of FA Playmakers from under-represented communities to achieve their full licence by removing the cost of the additional safeguarding and first aid courses required for supervising under 18s.

Connecting grassroots clubs and communities for increased Digital skills training:

• More than 200 grassroots football clubs across the home nations will be given a package of BT services and become part of the rollout of the new digital skills programme BT Skills for Tomorrow to turn football clubhouses into hubs for their community, helping to create the best-connected grassroots football community in the world.

• The new BT Skills for Tomorrow programme will be rolled out across the UK, starting in March at the National Stadium in Belfast where 50 18-24 years olds will celebrate completing a Work Ready programme, designed to help them develop employability and digital skills.

• Community football clubs will become hubs to give those at the club, in the local community and in small businesses the digital skills and confidence they need.

• These initiatives will support BT’s wider ambition by 2025 to empower 10 million people by giving them the skills they need for the digital world.

BOOSTING THE WOMEN’S GAME: BT will use its digital innovation and broadcasting expertise to inspire a new generation of girls and women to participate in football, on and off the pitch.

Football Mum to Football Manager:

• BT will bring 50,000 new women directly into the grassroots eco-system via the FA Playmaker online course as well as offering bursaries and mentoring schemes for women wanting to progress in football coaching.

Broadcast opportunities:

• Through BT Sport’s industry leading expertise, BT will provide an opportunity for girls and women to follow their ambitions for a career in sports broadcasting.

• BT Sport will increase its work with female students to offer broadcast training and presenting opportunities to create programming around women’s football.

• BT will create more TV and online content celebrating and showcasing women in football to help inspire and educate on the opportunities available on or off the pitch.

Marc Allera, CEO of BT’s Consumer division, said: “Football, like BT, is part of the fabric of our nations and we believe that combining football with the power of our technology, innovation and people will benefit society and the lives of millions of people across the UK over the next five years. We’re using these partnerships to break down barriers and create a meaningful legacy across grassroots, para and women’s football in the UK.”

“This is the start of a very exciting journey that goes far beyond traditional sponsorships and we’re looking forward to successful partnerships, on and off the pitch, with all the Home Nations over the coming years.”

Mark Bullingham, CEO of The FA, commented: “BT is using the partnership to have a transformative impact on people throughout the country. They have identified three important areas for growth and we are looking forward to BT bringing their digital expertise and innovative thinking to achieve these goals”

Ian Maxwell, CEO of The Scottish FA, added: “BT have some ambitious plans to combine football and technology to engage communities across the nation. Their goals for grassroots, girls’ and women’s and para-football dovetail perfectly with our own and we are excited at the opportunities our partnership with them holds for Scottish football.”

Jonathan Ford, CEO FA of Wales, added: “Football has the power to transform communities and it’s fantastic that this partnership will enable grassroots, women’s and para football clubs across Wales to benefit from the expertise and services that BT have to offer.” 

Irish FA Chief Executive Patrick Nelson said: “It is great that BT, as title sponsor of our men’s teams and our development and disability teams, is using its wealth of knowledge and expertise to help the football community in this way.“BT’s 4-3-3 strategy, with its focus on introducing new technology, innovation and enhancing digital skills, is a positive and very welcome initiative.“This strategy will undoubtedly be of immense benefit as we strive to promote, foster and develop football for all in Northern Ireland.”

Kamran Mallick, CEO, Disability Rights UK said “Sport is a way of bringing people together, an enabler for increased wellbeing, motivation and enjoyment. For many disabled people the barriers we experience limit or exclude us from taking part in sport. We are excited to be partnering with BT to see how technology can remove these barriers and help us to find ways to participate in sport with our peers and communities, and to be active in a way that works for us.”