More than one million subscribers have signed up to France Professional Football League’s (LFP) Ligue1+ direct-to-consumer (DTC) streaming service within the first month of operation.
Ligue 1+ attracted more than 600,000 subscribers for its opening weekend – more than previous rights owner DAZN achieved throughout the entire of the 2024/25 season – and has continued to add more users as the season has progressed.
French soccer’s top-flight has already achieved its target for the service’s debut season, with nearly three quarters (72 per cent) of viewers committed for the entire 2025/26 campaign.
LFP has partially attributed its success to wide distribution across France’s leading pay-TV and streaming service providers, including DAZN, Orange,Free and Amazon Prime Video, whilst also making reference to Ligue1+’s expand editorial output.
Competitive pricing has also been a factor. Ligue 1+ is currently priced at €14.99 (US$17.71) per month, with a promotional deal offered of €9.99 (US$11.80) for the first three months. Along with its general offer, Ligue 1+ also has a €9.99 package for those under 26 and a month-to-month plan priced at €19.99 (US$23.62).
Ligue1+, which reportedly cost €66 million (US$77.98 million) to set up, offers subscribers access to exclusive coverage of eight live games per week, as well as the Trophée des Champions, the relegation playoffs and the two final matchweeks, In addition, the service airs two magazine shows, and plans to show additional non-live programming like a children’s show and behind-the-scenes docuseries.
The league is targeting between 2.2 million and 2.5 million subscribers within the first four years of operation. The LFP will also hope to agree a carriage deal with Canal+, France’s most important pay-TV platform, to attract additional subscribers in the near future.
The LFP’s decision to launch its own DTC service was borne out of a number of successive failed broadcast deals, starting with the collapse of its €3.25 billion agreement with Mediapro in 2020. In doing so, it became the first of Europe’s ‘Big Five’ European soccer leagues to broadcast its games domestically on its own channels, initiating an experiment that the entire industry is closely following.
Wide reach, affordable pricing, and stronger support from the clubs has helped Ligue 1+ make significant progress in its first few weeks. High rates of adoption will be hugely encouraging for the league and its clubs who will be watching for any signs of churn as the season progresses.
The shift from a conventional broadcast deal to a DTC model is an inherently risky one, with clubs also having to adjust to a world with more variable media income. The early signs are positive but the low cost of subscriptions mean there is still some way to go before Ligue 1 clubs enjoy meaningful financial returns and there is uncertainty about whether the LFP can find additional sources of growth.
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