European Commission investigators have raided Rupert Murdoch’s 21st Century Fox’s London office.

UK Media reported on Wednesday morning (AEDT) that authorities were on site and had raided a number of Mr Murdoch’s offices as part of a wider probe into possible anti-competitive practices regarding the distribution of sports rights in the region.

The European watchdogs confirmed it had conducted “unannounced inspections” but stressed that its inspections did not indicate guilt.

“The European Commission can confirm that on 10 April 2018 its officials carried out unannounced inspections in several [European Union] member states at the premises of companies active in the distribution of media rights and related rights pertaining to various sports events and/or their broadcasting,” the commission said in a statement.

“Unannounced inspections are a preliminary step into suspected anticompetitive practices. [It] … does not mean that the companies are guilty of anti-competitive behaviour nor does it prejudge the outcome of the investigation itself.”

“Fox Networks Group (FNG) is co-operating fully with the EC inspection,” a spokesman said on Tuesday. FNG is an operating unit of Fox, which distributes TV and cable channels and content around the world.

Britain’s Daily Telegraph reported earlier on Tuesday that the competition watchdog had raided Fox offices to seize documents and company records.

It said investigators would be on site possibly until Thursday and that Mr Murdoch’s organisation was co-operating with the inspection.

The raid comes amid Fox’s attempted $15 billion takeover of Sky, which the UK’s Competition and Markets Authority has currently tied up, saying Fox’s bid would not be in the public interest.

It said there are concerns that the deal could lead to the Murdoch Family Trust holding too much influence over public opinion and the political agenda.

-with AAP