Heavyweight US sports network ESPN will provide domestic coverage of a raft of pre-season matches featuring top European soccer clubs over the coming weeks.

The network has secured rights to the Soccer Champions Tour, which includes six of Europe’s most iconic teams (as well as Wrexham, the UK lower-league outfit owned by Hollywood stars Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney).

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The tour has been devised by US investment firm Sixth Street and begins on July 22 as Spanish giants Barcelona take on Italy’s Juventus.

DirecTV, the US satellite broadcaster, is the tour’s presenting sponsor.

Six of the games will be exclusively available on ESPN, while another two will be carried by the broadcaster’s linear TV networks.

Each fixture will be presented in both English and Spanish – aside from Barcelona, LaLiga heavyweights Real Madrid are also involved. The other teams are Manchester United and Arsenal from the English Premier League, and AC Milan from Italy's Serie A.

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Sixth Street, and its premium experiences company Legends, first unveiled the Soccer Champions Tour as a concept in May.

In 2024, the annual event is expected to feature a women’s edition too.

DirecTV will be involved in distributing the tour’s matches to bars, restaurants, and other commercial premises.

The eight-match tour concludes on August 2 in Orlando, Florida, as Real Madrid take on Juventus.

It is being produced in partnership with AEG, the sports and live entertainment company, and the eight fixtures will take place in Dallas, Houston, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Orlando, and San Francisco.

In terms of its rights across European soccer, ESPN covers LaLiga, Germany’s Bundesliga, as well as action from the Netherlands and lower-league matches from England.