Canal+ has lived very well without Ligue 1 for a few years. Framed with the LFP, the chain has chosen to bet on the European cuts which will allow it, next week, to have PSG, OM, Monaco, Lille, Lyon and Strasbourg for its antennas. For the weekend, there are other sports to broadcast (rugby, F1, motorcycle, golf …) and a good dose of premier league for football lovers. The cocktail works pretty well.
Unfortunately for Canal+, this balance could be broken within two years. According to an article by Bloomberg, which takes up a theme mentioned by L'Equipe, a revolution is preparing on the European TV rights front. UEFA would like to make room for digital giants, such as Netflix and Amazon.
The project? Make a global call for tenders, which would allow an international player to win the rights of one or more matches. Until now, rights have been negotiated countries by country, with a different timing depending on the contracts in force. By pooling negotiations, UEFA would facilitate a possible XXL offer from a large streaming platform.
Giant competitors for Canal+
Amazon already has certain rights for the Champions League, in countries like the United Kingdom, Germany and Italy. Its Prime Video platform broadcasts a meeting each day, the poster of Tuesday or Wednesday, depending on the country. While UEFA will launch the tender for the period 2027-2030, Canal+ could therefore have strong competition, and see its exclusivity threatened.
For the Club World Cup, FIFA had already negotiated a planetary agreement with Dazn, which was a kind of first on the TV rights market. Dazn is a potential pretender for the Champions League, just as Disney and Apple could be …
