ITV wins UEFA Cup rights

ITV has secured the UK broadcast rights to the final stages of the UEFA Cup on an exclusive basis for the first time.

"This is a great deal for ITV and we are delighted to add yet another world class tournament to our existing portfolio of live football," said Mark Sharman, director of ITV Sport. "ITV and UEFA already enjoy a very successful relationship and the addition of the UEFA Cup to our Champions' League coverage and, of course, FIFA World Cup makes for a very powerful line up for ITV's channels."

The agreement runs for the 2006/07 and 2008/09 seasons and grants ITV the exclusive broadcast rights to the quarter-finals, semi-finals and finals of the tournament. The agreement also covers the Super Cup match, which this year will see Barcelona take on Seville.

"This is exactly the sort of top flight event that ITV is committed to bringing to the network," said ITV's director of television Simon Shaps. "It performed strongly for us last season and In recent weeks we have seen the power of live football in uniting audiences in a way that very few events still can. ITV is the perfect home for a tournament of this size and scale."