OBN wins Ethiopian Premier League TV rights ahead of 2025-26 season

Oromia Broadcasting Network (OBN) has won the Ethiopian Premier League television rights ahead of the 2025/26 season opener this coming weekend. The Ethiopian Premier League Share Company (EPLSC) opened a tender after the exit of SuperSport at the end of the 2024/25 season.

Four local television stations were vying for the rights, with OBN now emerging as the winner to broadcast the league. The EPLSC has yet to confirm the news but has called the media for a signing ceremony at the Ethiopian Skylight Hotel on Friday, October 17, in Addis Ababa. The deal is set to be for the next two seasons, but details of the deal are expected to be revealed during the press conference tomorrow.

Ethiopian Broadcasting Corporation and ARTS TV were the competitors to OBN for the TV rights deal of the league. Amhara Media Corporation also showed interest. OBN is owned by the Oromia Regional State and is based in Adama City. SuperSport, for the last two seasons, has been renting equipment from OBN as the local station.

League games that will be staged in Addis Ababa will get live TV coverage, while teams based in Hawassa will, for now, see their games broadcast. EPLSC failed to get any concrete interest from international broadcasters after SuperSport exited the league.

The league will commence with the Sheger Derby between cross-city rivals Ethiopian Coffee and Saint George in Addis Ababa on Sunday, October 19. The derby is expected to get live coverage on OBN.