Tribune. The question of the weight of money in sport, and football in particular, is not new. It has followed, crescendo, the rise of the media, the creation of television channels and, of course, that of the Internet, which has pushed back the limits of broadcasting.
It is thus now possible, when one is a football fan, to watch more or less any match, at any time, on condition of paying.
The former director general of the Professional Football League (LFP), Didier Quillot, could thus rave about the TV rights agreement a few weeks ago, generating new resources for the clubs and the League. The rights for Ligue 1 are today 1.15 billion euros (2020-2024) against 375 million euros for the 2004-2005 season and 122 million in 1998-1999, i.e. a tenfold increase in twenty years!
This new windfall, supposed to feed the clubs and participate in their good financial health, nevertheless raises some questions, in particular on the ability of users to see and therefore to pay.
Up to a hundred euros
It already seems distant, the arrival in France of the Canal + group, in 1984, historical player in the broadcasting of all the matches of the old D1, then in the early 2000s, those of the Champions League and major championships. foreigners.
The logical consequence of this large liberal market? The increase in the average basket for each viewer in order to subscribe, if the latter obviously has the means.
Thus, for the next season 2020-2021, “the fair price” of the total bill will rise to around one hundred euros, divided between a monthly subscription to Canal + (20 euros), to BeIN Sports (15 euros), to RMC Sport (25 euros), and finally to the new Spanish actor Mediapro, at 25 euros.
All the major European leagues in fact benefit from a monopoly situation which allows them to “slice up” the offers in order to multiply the prizes and, therefore, the financial returns. Thus, the arrival of a new operator on the market, such as Mediapro, is boosting the market, which is already extremely competitive. Even if the operators, as a result of their outbidding, must then find new agreements like the recent one between Mediapro and Netflix.
Unreasonable fees
All this consolidates, for the moment, the speculative bubble around football rights and should delight the major decision-makers of French football and the clubs whose endowments will indeed increase.
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