Live Sport Makes A Comeback to DStv and GOtv This June

The new month comes with great news for DStv and GOtv customers who are sport fanatics. Following a couple of months of limited sporting events due to the COVID-19 pandemic, things are slowly starting to get back to normal around the world and the amount of live-action available to SuperSport viewers on DStv and GOtv will increase significantly this month.

“Recent world events have seen the curtailment of live sport around the globe, and even as we commit to maintaining the entertainment with the chance to ‘ReLive’ classic matches,  documentaries and the greatest sports films of all time, we know that nothing beats real-time sports action, so we welcome the return of live sports to our screens,” says MultiChoice Kenya Managing Director, Nancy Matimu.

For football fans, this includes the resumption of three major European leagues: the Premier League, La Liga, and Serie A! All three confirmed their restart dates last week, with Spain’s La Liga the first to return to SuperSport screens on the evening of Thursday 11 June with the Seville derby of Sevilla v Real Betis. A further nine fixtures to complete a full round will be played over the weekend of 12-14 June.

“There are more than 130 people at La Liga working so that everything can be done, in a new way: traveling, organization, everything,” said La Liga president Javier Tebas. “We’re prepared and the important thing will be the day we finish the competition. The next will start on September 12.”

La Liga’s resumption sees the titanic title tussle between Barcelona and Real Madrid come back into focus, with just two points separating the teams at the top of the log. Los Blancos appeared to have more momentum behind them, having beaten Barca in Madrid in early March before the league was suspended, but the break has since allowed the Catalans to regroup and recover from a major spate of injuries.

The next to follow in resumes will be the Premier League, which will hold two catch-up fixtures – Manchester City v Arsenal and Aston Villa v Sheffield United – on Wednesday 17 June, before a first full round of fixtures running from Friday 19 to Monday 22 June.

All eyes will be on leaders Liverpool, who only need 2 more wins in order to be crowned 2019/2020 champions, their first top-flight championship in 30 years. Their first game back will be a way to Everton (with the match possibly set to be played at a neutral venue) – depending on the result of Manchester City’s earlier matches, the Reds could clinch the title with victor against their cross-town rivals!

Italy’s Serie A will also resume on the weekend of 19-21 June, and bring with it one of the most thrilling title races anywhere in Europe. Champions Juventus hold a one-point lead over nearest chasers Lazio, who have become one of the most entertaining and effective teams in the Italian top flight. Internazionale is also on the fringes of the title race and could bring themselves back into contention if they win their game in hand.

And football is not the only sport which will be returning live to SuperSport, in the coming days and weeks: Rugby makes a comeback with New Zealand’s domestic Aotearoa on the weekend of 13-14 June (the Highlanders take on the Chiefs and the Blues host the Hurricanes), golf’s PGA Tour will hold the Charles Schwab Challenge from 11 to 14 June, and even IAAF Athletics is back on the calendar with the Oslo Impossible Games on 11 June.

There’s also horse racing (the Investec Coronation Cup on Friday 5 June), IndyCar (the Genesys 600 on Sunday 7 June) and the continuation of series which have already been holding live events through these troubled times, including UFC 250 (Sunday 7 June), the NASCAR Cup (7, 11 and 14 June) and WWE’s latest pay-per-view special, ‘Backlash’ on Monday 15 June.

SuperSport remains your best choice for all the top action from around the world and will be the first and best source of entertainment for when sporting codes return to fields, tracks and rings around the world.

Formula 1 confirms first eight races – Season to start on July 5

SuperSport viewers on DStv can now begin counting down the days until the start of the 2020 Formula 1 season, with the opening race scheduled to take place at the Red Bull Ring in Austria on Sunday July 5. This means that SuperSport viewers, as of 2 July, can start their engines, settle in on the couch and enjoy the best drivers battling wheel to wheel in the world’s fastest cars.

The 2020 Formula 1 season – which almost began in Australia in March but was canceled late in the day due to world events, and has remained suspended ever since – will start with two races behind closed doors in Austria on July 5 and July 12 followed by six other Grand Prix in Europe.

There will then be a two-week break before two consecutive races in Britain and events in Spain, Belgium, and Italy. The British Grands Prix at Silverstone will be held 2 and 9 August, followed immediately by the Spanish Grand Prix at Barcelona on 16 August. The Belgian and Italian Grands Prix will complete the European part of the season on their original dates of 30 August and 6 September.

Formula 1 said it hoped to have between 15 and 18 races in total, with the season being completed in December. Details of the remaining races will be confirmed in due course.

Formula 1 calendar

3-5 July: Austrian Grand Prix (Red Bull Ring, Spielberg)

10-12 July: Steiermark Grand Prix (Red Bull Ring, Spielberg)

17-19 July: Hungarian Grand Prix (Hungaroring, Budapest)

31 July-2 August: British Grand Prix (Silverstone, Northamptonshire)

7-9 August: 70th Anniversary Grand Prix (Silverstone, Northamptonshire)

14-16 August: Spanish Grand Prix (Circuit de Catalunya, Barcelona)

28-30 August: Belgian Grand Prix (Spa-Francorchamps, Stavelot)

4-6 September: Italian Grand Prix (Monza, Milan)

For DStv, download MyDStv App or dial *423# to buy, pay, connect, or clear error codes. DStv subscribers, while you’re on the move, you can stream the action on DStv Now. For GOtv, download MyGOtv App or dial *423# to pay, connect or clear error codes.  For more information on your Channel of Champions and the best ways to subscribe, visit www.dstv.com or  www.gotvafrica.com.

Major football leagues returning – Broadcast schedules all-time CAT 

La Liga:

Thursday 11 June

22:00: Sevilla v Real Betis

Friday 12 June

19:30: Granada v Getafe

22:00: Valencia v Levante

Saturday 13 June

13:00: Espanyol v Deportivo Alaves

17:00: Celta Vigo v Villarreal

19:30: Leganes v Real Valladolid

22:00: Mallorca v Barcelona

Sunday 14 June

13:00: Athletic Bilbao v Atletico Madrid

19:30: Real Madrid v Eibar

22:00: Real Sociedad v Osasuna

Premier League:

Wednesday 17 June

TBD: Manchester City v Arsenal

TBD: Aston Villa v Sheffield United

Friday 19 June – Monday 22 June

First full round of Premier League return

Serie A:

Friday 19 June – Monday 22 June

First full round of Serie A return

Major live events over the next two weeks on SuperSport – Confirmed broadcast schedules

Friday 5 June

14:30: Horse racing: Investec Coronation Cup – LIVE on SuperSport 1, SuperSport 10 and SuperSport

Sunday 7 June

02:00: MMA: UFC 250 preliminary card – LIVE on SuperSport 1, SuperSport 11

02:40: IndyCar: Genesys 600 – LIVE on SuperSport 2 and SuperSport 8

04:00: MMA: UFC 250 main card – LIVE on SuperSport 1, SuperSport 11

21:00: NASCAR Cup: Folds of Honor QuikTrip 500 – LIVE on SuperSport 2 and SuperSport 8

Thursday 11 June

01:00: NASCAR Cup: Blue-Emu Maximum Pain Relief 500 – LIVE on SuperSport 2 and SuperSport 8

20:00: IAAF Diamond League: Oslo Impossible Games – LIVE on SuperSport 1, SuperSport 8 and SuperSport Select Go 3

21:00: PGA Tour: Charles Schwab Challenge Day 1 – LIVE on SuperSport 6

 

Friday 12 June

22:00: PGA Tour: Charles Schwab Challenge Day 2 – LIVE on SuperSport 6

Saturday 13 June

07:00: Aotearoa Rugby: Highlanders v Chiefs – LIVE on SuperSport 1, SuperSport 5

19:00: PGA Tour: Charles Schwab Challenge Day 3 – LIVE on SuperSport 6

 Sunday 14 June

05:00: Aotearoa Rugby: Blues v Hurricanes – LIVE on SuperSport 1, SuperSport 5

19:00: PGA Tour: Charles Schwab Challenge Day 4 – LIVE on SuperSport 6

21:30: NASCAR Cup: Dixie Vodka 400 – LIVE on SuperSport 2 and SuperSport 8

 Monday 15 June

01:00: WWE Pay-per-view: Backlash – LIVE on SuperSport 1, SuperSport 4, SuperSport 9, SuperSport Select Go 5 and WWE Channel 128