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David Beckham’s UEFA Champions League Altcast coming to Paramount+

David Beckham’s UEFA Champions League Altcast coming to Paramount+

David Beckham and his friends will commentate on UEFA Champions League matches as part of a two-year deal for alternative broadcast on streamer Paramount+.

As part of the partnership, the “Beckham & Friends” altcast for CBS Sports’ UEFA Champions League coverage will be available as a new option for Paramount+ subscribers. The Beckham-hosted versions will stream during matches of the UEFA Champions League semi-finals and UEFA Champions League final. The deal includes exclusive altcasts on Paramount+ in 2025 and 2026, where Beckham will be “joined by his friends from the worlds of sport, media and entertainment,” according to Paramount.

Beckham, the now-retired English soccer superstar, made the announcement Tuesday during a guest appearance on CBS Sports’ studio show “UEFA Champions League Today.” The 2024-25 season will begin on Sept. 17, with the traditional group stage replaced by a 36-team league system.

Beckham said the “watch party”-style altcast will likely feature a different celebrity friend each time. “I love watching the game, and I like watching the game a certain way, and most of the time that’s either with my kids or my friends,” Beckham said of the commentary. “So it’ll be a bit of a sit-down watching the games, commentating on the games, with friends, talking about the game, and sometimes not talking about the game.”

Watch a clip of Beckham’s announcement:

On Tuesday, Beckham spoke at the Royal Television Society conference in London about the Emmy-winning documentary series “Beckham” on Netflix, which is produced by his production company Studio 99. “I hated almost every moment of filming … it was very difficult,” he said.

Beckham’s deal with Paramount+ continues the trend of sports broadcasters presenting multiple versions of the same event, overlaid with different commentary teams and other features. Most famous in the US is the “ManningCast”, ESPN’s popular live broadcast series for NFL games “Monday Fight Football”, hosted by superstar brothers Peyton and Eli Manning, which is currently in its fourth season.

Paramount+’s “Beckham & Friends” is produced by CBS Sports in association with the UEFA Champions League, Authentic and Relevent Sports Group.

The UEFA Champions League is one of more than 1,500 soccer matches broadcast live on Paramount+ each year. The service is also the streaming home of CBS Sports’ live sports programming, including NFL, college football and basketball, golf, and soccer, including the UEFA Champions League and the National Women’s Soccer League.

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