The president of the football club Rukh Hryhoriy Kozlovskyy spoke about the creation of a single UPL television pool.
"As far as I know, UPL has two proposals for the purchase of TV rights. Megogo offered $100,000 per year to all clubs – that’s about $4,500 each. And Setanta offered $1.5 million, excluding what goes to UAF, that’s $60-70 thousand per club. I do not perceive it differently as a handout. I believe that clubs should have dignity and show their vision.
If tomorrow our club votes for something, then only for the telepool of free broadcasting of matches for Ukrainians. I understand that it is also difficult for media platforms to pay money for the championship of Ukraine, that clubs need funds to survive, but such offers are nothing more than handouts. The Rukh football club will definitely not participate in this farce. This is our official position. We know our price".
Hryhoriy Kozlovskyy proposed an alternative, which, foremost, should satisfy the audience and fans.
"Therefore, I call on all clubs to refuse such offers and give the broadcast rights to national channels for free. Let people watch football and have fun. Once upon a time in England, clubs refused to pay for broadcasting for three years and showed football for free, which raised interest among fans. Currently, broadcast rights cost more than 5 billion per season. I think that we need to work in this direction".