The request for a downward renegotiation of TV rights to the French Championship formulated in L’Equipe by Jaume Roures, the boss of Mediapro, holder of the rights to Ligue 1 and Ligue 2 this season (for an annual total of 814 million euros), caused trouble within the authorities of the round ball. Especially since this exit followed a request for postponement of the second deadline (172 million euros) due on October 6. Concern is growing, as explained by Christophe Lepetit, economist at the Limoges Center for Sports Law and Economics.
According to you, are we at the start of a simple renegotiation of TV rights or facing a more serious crisis?
CHRISTOPHE LEPETIT. Whatever it is, the situation is worrying. There are two economic pillars in the revenues of a football club: player transfers, which represent 800 to 900 million euros in capital gains from sales each year and TV rights, which represent half of the revenues, up to 70-80%. Today, the situation is as follows: there have been half as many transfers and TV rights are called into question. This is very worrying for the viability of clubs in the short term.
Mediapro cites economic difficulties linked to the health crisis …
It is to be hoped that this argument does not hide other difficulties. They arrive on the French market and did not launch until the end of August. Faced with a major economic and social crisis, viewers, already reluctant to increase subscriptions, watch twice before making certain expenses. But three and a half million subscribers to 25 euros per month … All the experts had doubts about the viability of the model, even in normal times. This proves all those, including club presidents, who had expressed doubts about Mediapro’s strategy right.
What if Mediapro withdrew altogether?
An urgent call for tenders would then have to be launched. The LFP would find itself facing Canal + and beIN, which have come together, from which it withdrew the rights during the 2018 call for tenders … Canal + would certainly take over the rights. He would find himself in the position of “price maker”, that is to say, he would set the price. He would have no interest in killing the product and would give what he considers to be the right price to ensure the continuity of the championship and avoid cascading bankruptcies.
Could the LFP decide to return to a more modest way of life?
For now, the LFP is in the position to claim what is contractually owed to it. Which seems legitimate to me. But if it did not get it, the question would be how far to go economically in the negotiations, without putting the clubs too much in difficulty and risking bankruptcy.
