BERLIN -- A marketing company led by former German soccer star Guenter Netzer finalized its deal Monday for most television rights to soccer's 2006 World Cup.
Infront Sports and Media AG bought the rights from KirchSport, part of Leo Kirch's media companies, some of which have filed for insolvency.
Infront won the bidding to the tournament, which will be played in Germany, last Oct. 10, along with rights to the German Bundesliga and the ice hockey and handball world championships.
German newspapers estimated that Infront offered about $325 million for KirchSport's assets.
Infront, which will sell rights to broadcasters around the world, will have to pay $1.08 billion to FIFA, soccer's governing body.
U.S. rights to the 2006 tournament already have been purchased by a company headed by Major League Soccer commissioner Don Garber and formed by MLS investor-operators Anschutz Entertainment Group, The Hunt Sports Group and Dentsu Inc.
For the 2002 tournament in Japan and South Korea, The Walt Disney Co.'s ESPN, ESPN2 and ABC turned over time slots to MLS, which sold ads and paid production costs.
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