A week ago, the
Professional Football League (LFP) awarded the TV rights for Ligue 1 to the DAZN and beIN Sports groups for the period 2024-2029. In total, a viewer wishing to watch all Ligue 1 matches could pay around 50 euros per month! RMC specified that the monthly subscription to DAZN would amount to 40 euros without commitment, and 30 euros in the event of a 12-month commitment.
These unprecedented amounts cast doubt on the viability of the project in the medium term. Could DAZN find itself in a situation comparable to that of Mediapro in 2021? The group had rushed its departure after being unable to cover its costs due to its pricing policy. This is the scenario that some observers fear.
“There will be an explosion of IPTV and piracy”
For Daniel Riolo, the situation is very clear:
Piracy will explode in the coming weeks. “With this price, I think they will have a hard time exceeding a million subscribers. IPTV will explode. It’s just crazy. We could be heading for a cataclysm. There will be an explosion of IPTV and piracy.”
For his part, Giovanni Castaldi made the same observation. “You’re going to ask people who don’t have money to pay €49 to watch football! Here we are just saving clubs that have been doing whatever they want with their money for 10 years.” The coming months will outline a first trend for Ligue 1 broadcasters…
