Apple reportedly considers bidding for English soccer streaming rights

Apple Inc AAPL-Q is considering bidding for streaming rights of a range of English football games, Bloomberg News reported on Thursday, citing people familiar with the situation.

The rights under consideration would allow Apple to show Premier League games in the U.K., as well as lower league matches run by the English Football League, the report said.

Sports remains one of the biggest attractions for live viewing as U.S. audiences increasingly switch from pay TV subscriptions to streaming apps.

Last year, major League Soccer and Apple TV had announced a partnership that will see every game streamed on the app for the next decade.

The move is also part of Apple’s bid to popularize its streaming service Apple TV+, known for hits like “Ted Lasso” and “The Morning Show”.

The company was planning to spend $1-billion a year to produce movies that will be released in theatres, according to another Bloomberg report on Thursday.

Apple approached film studios about partnering to release a few titles in theatres this year and a slate of more films in the future, the report said.

Apple did not immediately respond to Reuters request for comment on the reports, while the Premier League declined to comment.