Britney Spears 'Officially Signs X Factor USA Deal'

Britney Spears is said to have 'officially signed' a deal to be a judge on the new series of The X Factor USA, E! News has reported.

After months of speculation over who would replace ex-panelists Paula Abdul and Nicole Scherzinger, a source close to Spears has 'confirmed' to the American website that the pop princess WILL be taking her seat next to L.A. Reid and Simon Cowell.

It is thought that Britney will pocket a cool $15million (£9.3m) for just one seasons work after finally signing her name on the dotted line earlier this week - making her the highest paid reality TV judge since Jennifer Lopez on American Idol.

The source told E! News: "The contract is signed. There's been a lot of back and forth over the past few weeks as they negotiated the small details, but she's on. It's all completed and Britney is beyond excited,

"She's ready for this. She can't wait to sit down next to Simon at the judges' table and give this everything she's got. She is excited about showing the world that she can do this, and do this well."

They added: "This is the perfect next stage in her career. Both Britney and Simon are very excited to work together."

While the Hold It Against Me hitmaker may have allegedly landed a judging role on the show, Disney starlet Demi Lovato has been linked to land the final vacant seat on the XF USA panel - with Lovato previously telling MTV News UK that the job would be "a dream come true."

There is still no official confirmation from either Britney or The X Factor USA regarding E! News' allegations, but keep it MTV.co.uk for more news on this story.

CHECK OUT PICS FROM THE X FACTOR USA 2011 HERE!

SEE PICS OF BRITNEY SPEARS IN OUR GALLERY HERE

WATCH XF USA JUDGE SIMON COWELL'S OFFICIAL TOP 50 HERE!