Rugby: Euro rugby's new arena

Former All Black Nick Evans plays for English club Harlequins. Photo / Getty Images

Coliseum Sports Media look set to expand their content after securing some European rugby rights previously screened by Sky TV.

The move follows the loss of English Premier League football and top golf from Sky's repertoire.

But Sky are still tipped to hold on to Rugby World Cup rights for New Zealand and on Friday announced the signing of a conditional five-year deal with the New Zealand Rugby Union and Sanzar, which included the screening of All Blacks and Super Rugby matches. A long-form agreement will follow.

Coliseum Sports Media are set to announce on Tuesday they have secured rights to screen some European rugby on their live online service.

Chief executive Tim Martin would not divulge the nature of the competition, saying all would be revealed on Tuesday.

Sky have previously broadcast the Six Nations - via the ESPN channel - and the elite Heineken Cup which features some of Europe's best club teams.

"We have looked at what other rugby New Zealanders can enjoy and Europe is where the money now is, and the players will follow," Martin said. "We want to ensure fans here can get access to great matches in the off-season and the All Blacks finish up in a few weeks.

"We expect the costs of watching the games will be cheaper than watching Premier League soccer."

PremierLeaguePass - which provides viewers live coverage of every Premier League game - costs $199 per season. The service also offers a variety of options ranging in price from $19.90 to $49.90.

Martin said Coliseum had tabled a bid to screen Rugby World Cup 2015 matches live on the internet. This had been "well considered" but ultimately turned down earlier this year, in favour of Sky, he added.

Sky insisted a contract to show next year's Rugby World Cup in New Zealand had not yet been inked.

"We are keen to get the rights and are in discussions," Sky TV spokeswoman Kirsty Way said. "However, a deal is not a deal until it is finalised."

TVNZ insisted Sky hold all the rights to the World Cup, but a spokeswoman for the state-funded station said they were not in a position to comment about any potential partnership deal to screen selected matches.