DAZN and BeIN Sports have reportedly acquired the domestic broadcast rights to French soccer’s Ligue 1
DAZN and BeIN Sports have reportedly acquired the domestic broadcast rights to French soccer’s Ligue 1 for a combined €500 million (US$546 million) a season until 2029.
Details of the five-year deals are still to be finalised, according to AFP, however Ligue 1 clubs have broadly agreed to the proposal in principle. It is expected DAZN will broadcast eight matches per round of fixtures, with BeIN showing the remaining matchup in a primetime slot.
The contract also purportedly includes an exit clause for DAZN and the Professional Football League (LFP) in 2027.
When combined with the €40 million (US$43.6 million) BeIN Sports is paying for the exclusive rights to the second-tier Ligue 2 competition, and the €160 million (US$175 million) that the LFP will receive for overseas rights, French clubs will share a total of €700 million (US$764 million) for at least the next two years.
However, the figure is significantly less than LFP’s stated target of at least €1 billion (US$1.1 billion) it set last year. The governing body scrapped a formal auction last October after failing to receive a satisfactory bid and has been negotiating with potential partners since.
BeIN Sports has been a Ligue 1 broadcaster since 2012, while DAZN had been considered the frontrunner for the rights given its recent expansion into the French market. Amazon was considered unlikely to have renewed its deal, while long-term partner Canal+ said it had no interest in bidding following a dispute with the LFP.
Indeed, the value of the deal is also lower than the LFP’s previous arrangements for Ligue 1.
Amazon paid €275 million (US$300 million) a season to show eight fixtures per week, with Canal+ showing the other two games via a sub-licensing deal with BeIN Sports worth €330 million (US$360 million) annually. BeIN also held the international rights, which were worth €70 million (US$76.4 million) annually, and the rights to Ligue 2. All those deals concluded at the end of last season.
Amazon’s cut-price deal was the result of the collapse of Ligue 1’s previous €814 million (US$888 million) a year agreement with Mediapro, which launched the Telefoot network to show the games. Canal+, frustrated at being unable to renegotiate its contract following the collapse of Telefoot and the process at which the rights were re-awarded to Amazon in 2021, took both matters to the courts and failed on both counts.
In the event of a ‘no deal’, the LFP had been preparing the launch of a direct-to-consumer (DTC) streaming service.
Although the LFP believed it could attract two million subscribers and €578 million (US$630 million) in revenues in its first season, many clubs and industry observers considered this forecast to be optimistic and the launch of a DTC platform to be a much riskier approach than working with an established broadcaster who could guarantee revenues.
By SportsProMedia
