* No current plans to buy Setanta
* Says any interest in Premier League rights hypothetical
(Adds further details)
By Kate Holton
LONDON, June 11 (Reuters) - ESPN, the Walt Disney-owned sports network, said on Thursday it had no current plans to buy the stricken Irish broadcaster Setanta, after days of speculation that it could make a bid.
The board of Setanta has spent the week in emergency refinancing talks to try to prevent the group from falling into administration. It has suspended signing up new customers and has said it is fighting to secure the business.
ESPN had been seen as a potential buyer for either the group or any rights that were subsequently put back up for sale.
"We currently have no plans to buy Setanta," a spokesman said, in response to the speculation. "There are a lot of stories out there that link ESPN with a possible purchase. We wanted to set the record straight."
ESPN previously lost out to Setanta in the auction for English Premier League live soccer rights and the group could have an opportunity to bid again if Setanta goes into administration.
Asked whether ESPN would still be interested in acquiring the rights, the spokesman said it was a hypothetical situation and a question for Setanta and the rights holder.
Setanta currently holds the rights to show two English Premier League packages, or 46 live matches a season, but it lost out in the auction for the next three-year deal to BSkyB and will only show 23 games per season against BSkyB's 115 from 2010.
The failure to win the rights and the economic downturn prompted Setanta to conduct a review of its business and attempt to renegotiate rights payments with a range of sporting bodies.
It missed a 3 million pound payment to the Scottish Premier League last week and faces a more than 30 million pound payment to the English Premier League next week.
The rescue talks are being led by the group's founders Michael O'Rourke and Leonard Ryan and media reports suggest their options include selling the profitable Irish and U.S. units. Setanta has declined to comment.
Setanta is a privately backed company whose shareholders include its management team and institutional investors.
(Editing by David Cowell)