NBC Sports, AEG Partner Develop Pub Pass for Commercial Establishments

NBC Sports Group, the home of the most prestigious properties and events in sports, and AEG, the world’s leading sports and live entertainment company, today announced that the two organizations have partnered to create and deliver the “NBC Sports Pub Pass”, a new customizable Over The Top (OTT) platform developed specifically for the retail pub/restaurant market in the U.S. to deliver a package of the most popular international sports and sporting competitions for their patrons.

Pub Pass is being packaged, targeted, and sold to pubs, bars, clubs, restaurants, and commercial establishments nationwide as an exclusive subscription service, providing premium content for soccer, rugby, and cycling all within a single subscription.

Subscribers to the NBC Sports Pub Pass will receive every event live as well as on-demand in the following:

• Rugby – Six Nations Championship, Champions Cup and Premiership Rugby
  • The Rugby World Cup will be available to add to the NBC Sports Pub Pass, with all matches available live and through on-demand replays
• Cycling – Tour de France, Vuelta a España, Amgen Tour of California, Paris –Roubaix, and more

Subscribers will also receive exclusive content not shown on linear TV:

• Soccer – 140 live Premier League matches not available on broadcast, cable or satellite TV, plus full replays of those matches.
• Rugby – 185 live matches, not shown on linear TV (comprised of the events listed above)
• Cycling – extra hours of each stage of top races, not shown on linear TV

“We are thrilled to expand our relationship with NBC Sports to bring the most popular and requested international sports to American audiences in their preferred neighborhood locations,” said Dan Lyle, Director, AEG Rugby. “There is no substitute for the incredible atmosphere that is created when passionate fans get together in a pub or restaurant to watch their favorite sports and favorite teams and with NBC Sports Pub Pass there will never again be a blackout or any other barrier preventing sports fans from gathering to celebrate the most important matches and sporting events from Europe and around the world.”

Services providing weekly premium sports content for retail establishments are common in most international markets, with premises paying for access to premium content for consumers to watch in pubs. This type of content offering is not currently available in the United States, and AEG and NBC Sports have created the NBC Sports Pub Pass to be easily accessible and affordable for all establishments, to draw fans to watch and experience the excitement of premier international sports together.

“NBC Sports Pub Pass is a unique product that we are proud to have developed with our partner, AEG, to make premium international sport more accessible to U.S. viewers,” said Portia Archer, Vice President of Direct-to-Consumer Services for NBC Sports. “We understand the importance and excitement of fans watching their favorite sports together. NBC Sports Pub Pass will support the traditions and strong communities within Premier League soccer, rugby, and cycling, to make it easier for fans to watch together live or via replay on demand.”

A commercial establishment with an NBC Sports Pub Pass subscription will provide fans with exclusive access to 140 live Premier League matches – which are not available on TV – as well as the full event replay for those matches. In addition, NBC Sports Pub Pass will deliver expansive coverage of the most prestigious rugby competition and cycling races from around the world.

Notably, there will no longer be a required entrance fee or cover charge to patrons at the door for any matches, as other providers of international sport previously required.