diet of Monday night soccer next season.

The Fox Sports network, which is currently unavailable on the Island, has agreed to an exclusive deal to broadcast the league for the next three years, leaving local viewers without their weekly fix.

The Monday night soccer, taken from the Sky satellite station in the UK, was previously provided on ESPN for viewers throughout North and South America and the Caribbean.

But it lost out to News Corporation's Fox in negotiations with league representatives Trans World International and Canal Plus earlier this year.

Financial details of the contract were not disclosed but it is believed to worth several million dollars.

Tony Ball, president of Fox, said at the time: "Our acquisition of exclusive rights to one of the world's pre-eminent soccer franchises is a clear indication that we are serious about building the Fox Sports brand.'' Bermuda Cablevision says it has no plans to increase the number of channels in its package.

Don Grimer, chief executive of Bermuda Cablevision, told The Royal Gazette yesterday: "We carry only what we are contracted to carry. If there's lacrosse on ESPN then we'll carry it. But we have no plans to make any changes.

"Any increase in channels would be an increase in our costs.'' To meet such an increase in costs, Mr Grimer suggested that Cablevision would have to be convinced there was a big enough market for the broadcast.

-- Nigel Henderson