The French top flight is already trailing behind the Premier League in terms of broadcasting revenue
As Ligue 1, like all other major European leagues, attempts to compete with the revenue generated by Premier League TV rights, it now faces a race against time to secure a broadcasting deal of any kind before the start of the 2024-25 season.
The French top-flight football league is currently engaged in crucial negotiations to secure a TV deal, with less than six weeks remaining before the start of the season. This follows a push by private equity firm CVC to bring potential bidders back into discussions.
Rival live streaming services DAZN and Amazon, both operators of rival TV streaming services, have re-entered negotiations as pressure mounts on league executives to find a solution. The absence of a broadcast deal so close to the season's commencement has left some teams financially vulnerable.
CVC played an instrumental role in reviving talks between broadcasters and the league after investing €1.5bn in Ligue de Football Professionnel (LFP) for a 13% share of future commercial revenue. However, LFP executives are still handling these negotiations.
French football club executives have held two meetings recently without deciding on how to proceed. A third meeting is scheduled for Friday with hopes of reaching a consensus on a deal that could release millions of euros for French clubs before August 18th when the season kicks off.
Right now, the league has two options. They can pursue a traditional rights deal involving multiple broadcasters or develop their own dedicated French football streaming service to broadcast Ligue 1 and Ligue 2 directly to fans. Whatever they choose, they must act fast with time running out.
DAZN has proposed buying most games with payments staggered towards the end of a contract running until 2029 linked to subscriber growth numbers. On the other hand, while Amazon's agreement expired last season, it hasn't bid but has held talks.
Qatar-owned BeIN SPORTS might step up if LFP secures another broadcaster for most Ligue 1 matches. Either Amazon or BeIN could acquire the remaining games if DAZN's offer gets accepted.
French league executives are also contemplating an ambitious proposal to create a new direct-to-consumer streaming service for Ligue 1 games. The league has held discussions with Warner Bros Discovery about streaming matches on its Max platform, which launched in Europe this year.
The production of live games would be outsourced to a third party, and revenue from the channel would be shared between clubs and Warner Bros. This move would require significant investment in broadcast infrastructure by the league, which could prove costly.
