This year France’s Ligue 1 had hoped to kick off its journey to the European elite. Though the national team won the most recent World Cup, the domestic championship in which many of its stars compete is, financially speaking, outplayed by richer leagues in England, Germany, Italy and Spain. A whopper broadcasting deal starting this season, worth over €1bn a year, up by 60% on the previous arrangement, would help it level the playing field.
The deal proved too big a whopper even for Mediapro, the Spanish broadcasting group with Chinese backers that snapped up most of the matches. The channel it had set up to show Ligue 1 clashes attracted few punters. Stretched for cash, it made just one quarterly instalment in August, then stopped paying entirely. By December the contract was voided.TV
group controlled by Vincent Bolloré, a ports-to-media tycoon, unexpectedly stayed away. Having lost the main football rights in 2018 after several decades, Canal+ says it can live without Ligue 1 . Many think it may rejoin the fray, but offer much less than Mediapro did. Amazon has also shown interest in streaming rights, but has offered stingier terms than traditional broadcasters.
Other European leagues are also ailing. Some, like the English Premier League, offered rebates to broadcasters during the covid-19 crisis. An auction for Italy’s Serierights in January fell short of expectations. A group of European clubs estimates 360 teams will need financial help to survive. The main concern in France is which channel will be airing the showdown on February 7th between Olympique de Marseille and Paris Saint-Germain—if any.
I mean, I know quite a few people who like soccer, but almost no one is interested in Ligue 1. The football they play is too boring and there is no competion whatsoever.
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