With a new interim director, the state – owned Romanian television announced late last week that it will no longer allow Romtelecom to broadcast some of the football matches in the EURO 2012 championship, but changed its mind over the week-end. Initially splitting the matches fifty – fifty, TVR and Romtelecom – which runs the sports channel Dolce Sport – will both broadcast the games.

With the change of leadership and after the public intervention by Romanian president Traian Basescu, who said the TV station should broadcast all games and the Olympics entirely, TVR announced it will indeed broadcast all the games in the ongoing championship.

Initially, TVR re-sold the rights to broadcast one of the two daily football matches to Romtelecom, for Dolce Sport. It canceled this agreement on Friday saying Dolce Sport had not respected the contract signed in November 2011, and that it had not paid bills on time. But over the week-end, TVR and Romtelecom reached an agreement. Dolce had paid EUR 500,000 in May and was due to pay some EUR 550,000 in June, on a bill which was incorrectly sent by TVR, according to Romtelecom.

TVR and Romtelecom negotiated for a year the contract, said Vlad Enachescu, general manager of Dolce Sport, who was accused of having rigged the contract with TVR thanks to his personal connection to Cosmin Cernat, the head of the sports department with TVR, and to his wife, Daniela Enachescu, editor in chief of the sports department in TVR. However, said the Dolce Sport manager, his wife's naming came after the contract was signed.

The value of the contract between the two companies was not disclosed. TVR paid some EUR 9.3 million to broadcast the championship. Many viewers had complained that not all games were broadcast on the national television and that they had to subscribe to Dolce Sport to watch them all.

The 2012 UEFA European Football Championship is the 14th European Championship for national football teams organised by UEFA. The final tournament is being hosted by Poland and Ukraine between June 8 and July 1 this year.

editor@romania-insider.com