Fellaini, Sturridge to celebrate BT Sport launch

Everton star Marouane Fellaini and Liverpool striker Daniel Sturridge have teamed up to celebrate the launch of BT Sport. Fellaini, 25, and Sturridge, 23, will be rivals on the pitch for the Merseyside derby on Sunday, but the duo are on the same team as BT Ambassadors and co-star in TV ads for BT Sport.

Both players will also feature in BT Sport programmes and in marketing and promotional materials for BT Sport. Spurs star and PFA Player of the Year Gareth Bale plus Arsenal and England winger Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain have also signed up to be BT Ambassadors. Premier League top scorer Robin van Persie, of Manchester United, will also star in the TV adverts.

BT Sport will show 38 exclusively live games from the Barclays Premier League for three years from August 2013. Eighteen of the games are top picks. BT Sport has also secured the rights to live top tier matches from Serie A in Italy, Ligue 1 in France, Brasileiro in Brazil and Major League Soccer in the USA, while BT’s acquisition of ESPN’s TV channels business in the UK and Ireland will bring the rights to show live games for the FA Cup, Scottish Premier League, Europa League and the German Bundesliga.

In addition, BT Sport will show exclusive coverage of all 69 live rugby union games from the Aviva Premiership. BT has also signed a deal with the Women’s Tennis Association (WTA) to show matches from 21 global tournaments, including the TEB BNP Paribas WTA Championships.