BSkyB ousted sports executive after BT's Premier League swoop Mr Dovey, who became deputy managing director of Sky Sports in 2005, was quietly dismissed from the pay-TV broadcaster in July. Sources said his departure was unrelated to the Premier League bidding issue, but would not reveal why the executive was ousted. BT made its surprise move into Premier League football in early June, paying £738m to win the rights to show live matches from next year. It placed bids for all seven of the packages in which Premier League rights are sold but only secured two because BSkyB raised its offer at the eleventh hour. BSkyB did not know that BT was in the running at the time, and assumed it was bidding against Middle Eastern broadcaster Al Jazeera. However, BT's shock entry into the market dramatically inflated the price of the games, forcing BSkyB to pay 40pc more that at the previous auction, for just one extra match. It also presents BSkyB with a major new competitive threat from the company which is already its biggest rival in the broadband and telephone market. According to sources, Mr Dovey was disgruntled after he was passed over for promotion to replace Vic Wakeling, BSkyB's former managing director of sport and news, who retired in 2009. BSkyB said: "Rik Dovey was not involved in Sky's successful bid for Premier League rights and his decision to leave was therefore unrelated." The broadcaster has previously said it secured all the Premier League games it was after. Mr Dovey could not be reached for comment.