AIS to stream Thai league, cup matches
Three top divisions to be covered
published : 1 Sep 2021 at 05:20
newspaper section: Business
writer: Komsan Tortermvasana
Advanced Info Service (AIS), the country's biggest mobile operator by subscribers, has partnered with the Football Association of Thailand (FAT) and Thai League Co to stream more than 600 matches from the professional leagues this season (2021-2022), starting from Wednesday, through its over-the-top platform AIS Play.
The programme, which involves tiers 1-3 of the country's professional football competition, can be viewed without charge via the AIS Play app as well as the AIS Playbox set-top box and website at aisplay.ais.co.th.
Playback of the matches can also be viewed at any time via AIS Play.
Pratthana Leelapanang, chief consumer business officer of AIS, said AIS Play has become a platform for Thai football viewership through which the audience can view the games anywhere without limitation.
"Besides supporting Thai football by bringing content to fans, AIS will continue to develop this [Thai football] platform as the complete hub for watching Thai football," he said.
"AIS is extremely proud to be part of elevating Thai football in this new era."
He said the company also plans to continue seeking out premium sports content, turning AIS Play into the number one sports channel in Thailand.
Pratthana: The 'complete hub'
The Thai League football programme includes all matches from the REVO Thai League, the M-150 Championship, the Bluedragon League, as well as the FA Cup and League Cup.
The REVO Thai League is the country's top flight with 16 teams taking part, while the second-tier M-150 Championship has 18 teams from every region competing for the title.
The third-tier Bluedragon League is a competition among teams from the provinces.
This season will kick off with the Thailand Champions Cup 2021 between BG Pathum United (the current champions of the Thai League) and Singha Chiangrai United (winner of the FA Cup) on Wednesday at 6pm. The first round of fixtures will get underway on Friday.
Pol Gen Somyot Poompanmoung, president of the FAT, said this season's Thai League will be historic for Thai football with a huge array of viewing choices building a platform for Thai football. This will upgrade the viewing experience and make Thai football more international, he said.
