Canal+, BeIN Sports, Netflix… What avenues after the break with Dazn?

It is the chronicle of an announced divorce. While mediation engaged with Dazn is coming to an end, the Professional Football League (LFP) started an early breakdown of the contract binding the two parties. This Tuesday, the college of presidents of Ligue 1 and then the Board of Directors of the LFP acted their desire to put an end to the agreement, opening the way to a precipitated end after only a few months of collaboration. Holding eight of the nine Ligue 1 posters each weekend for 400 million euros per year until 2029, the Dazn platform paid only part of the January deadline, denouncing the lack of cooperation of certain clubs and the operating conditions leaded by hacking. At a time when the Ligue 1 product is suffering from increasing devaluation, the LFP must now quickly find viable alternatives.

Faced with the failure of the partnership with Dazn, several scenarios are now under study to ensure the broadcast of the championship next season. According to The Parisianif the board of directors expressed its willingness to break the contract, ” Nothing is effective for the moment since an agreement must be found ». The expert in sports TV rights Pierre Maes, questioned by the daily, recalls that ” For the moment, this decision is only committed to them. That or nothing, it's the same thing ». Two options are envisaged: to resell the rights to another actor, or to launch a 100 % Ligue 1 channel, a project supported by Vincent Labrune and Joseph OUGHOURLIAN. But there are many risks: ” Putting things on the screen is not difficult, but recruiting and keeping subscribers is extremely difficult “Warns Pierre Maes. Without forgetting the heavy expenses in production and marketing, which would require many years before becoming profitable.

Video premium, Apple TV or Netflix in the race?

As precise The teamAmazon Prime Video, former L1 broadcaster, does not want to return to this market after three non -profitable seasons. Netflix had ” No exchange with the LFP And barely starts in live sport in the United States. As for Apple TV, it remains very discreet on the subject. Consequently, the alternative of a chain dedicated to Ligue 1 returns with more weight. Still according to the sports daily, the project would plan to centralize the ten games on a single platform, with an estimated launch cost of 55 million euros for the first season. The optimistic scenario presented in the summer of 2023 was tapped on 1.8 million subscribers from the first season, to generate 553 million euros in revenue.

This chain project could be articulated around a partnership with the Max platform, owned by Warner Bros Discovery. The team reveals that the idea would be to offer a subscription to € 27.99 per month, including Ligue 1 matches, films, series and Eurosport content. Warner would not carry the financial risk, just recovering around € 5 per subscriber, while the marketing would be provided by LFP Media. Another track would be to rely on Canal+ as a distributor and aggregator. The encrypted chain, with its marketing power, could offer Ligue 1 without paying rights, but generating profitable subscriptions for all. A compromise which, according to The teamwould allow the LFP to stabilize its income while controlling its own showcase.

The Canal+ and BeIN Sports option

Canal+, historical diffuser of Ligue 1, appears as a natural appeal, but its president Maxime Saada has repeatedly recalled that the current conditions do not lend themselves to it, especially for economic reasons (the channel already spends nearly € 480 million per season for European Cups, € 90 million for F1 and more than € 250 million for the exclusive distribution of Bein Sports, Note). Disply of a Ligue 1 poster every weekend, BeIN Sports does not seem, at this stage, willing to expand its commitment. Contacted by RMChowever, the group said: ” BeIN has a contract with the LFP, understands its obligations and will honor them as a responsible broadcaster and in support of French football, as he has been doing for more than a decade. A story that has therefore not finished pouring ink.