Canal+ made a strong choice by deciding to concentrate its football investment in TV rights for continental competitions. Just last summer, the media group chose to snub Ligue 1, highlighting its strategy dedicated to European football and the considerable effort thus made. Namely no less than 480 million euros each year to broadcast the Champions League, the Europa League and the Conference League.
The agreement currently in force runs until 2027. And that is already tomorrow since UEFA is preparing on Monday to launch its call for tenders for the rest of the events. The marketing of TV rights for the competitions in question will thus open for the period 2027-2030. Or even beyond depending on the nature of the proposals made. Optimistic, the European Football Confederation is aiming for a record total of over 5 billion euros annually.
How on earth can you achieve your goals in a tense economic context across the Old Continent as a whole? By simply offering new products. “ This new strategy reflects our ambition to lead the next phase of growth in UEFA men's club competitions. By taking an innovative approach in key markets and launching innovative new packages, we are setting a new benchmark for the delivery of football to fans around the world », Welcomes Guy-Laurent Epstein, co-director general of UC3, the structure which brings together UEFA and the EFC (European Football Clubs) to supervise the management and sale of commercial rights for UEFA-branded tournaments.
The GAFA in force?
Among the major innovations thus imagined, the marketing of one poster per day or round of the Champions League for the entire planet. A unique meeting likely to satisfy GAFA and other Netflix keen to reach an ever-wider audience, without making their program schedules heavier. With the key to UEFA being a nice expected jackpot.
While domestic rights in France are at half mast, those of European competitions are growing. So much so that the competition promises to be tougher than ever for Canal+, which perhaps made the mistake of putting all its eggs in one basket. DAZN and beIN Sports are credible candidates, just like the Americans Amazon, Apple, Paramount, Disney or Youtube. An unexpected actor cannot be excluded either according to the rumor buzzing recently in the corridors of UEFA.
