LFP Media, the media division of French club soccer’s governing body, has initiated a tender to find a production partner for its new in-house channel. The channel will cover top-tier Ligue 1 matches for the 2025-26 season.
According to French sports news outlet L’Equipe, the search is on for production companies that can support editorial content. Meanwhile, match production will be handled by the LFP internally. Four separate packages have been introduced to the market- Magazine program production, pre and post-match production, multiplex coverage, and editorial staff management.
To achieve this goal, it's expected that the league will need to partner with a major domestic player such as Canal Plus, BeIN Sports, Amazon or Disney. Former rights partner DAZN may also be considered despite prematurely ending its deal with LFP earlier this year.
Deciding on in-house vs external production
Based on responses received from potential partners through this tender process, decisions will be made regarding what level of in-house production is feasible versus what needs to be outsourced. The launch of this new channel is scheduled for August 15 – coinciding with the start of the Ligue 1 2025-26 season.
This move comes after recent negotiations between DAZN and LFP stalled over launching a potential joint venture channel together. Despite terminating its five-year domestic rights contract after just one season due to various issues including digital piracy concerns and withheld payments from DAZN; there seems an interest in retaining some form of partnership with them moving forward.
DAZN had originally secured five-season domestic rights covering eight matches per week out of nine total matches from an 18-team league just before commencement of the 2024-25 season. The annual value of LFP’s domestic deals with DAZN and Qatar-based broadcaster BeIN Sports last season was around €400 million ($453.2 million).
Legal action against DAZN
DAZN's regular withholding of rights money from the LFP, citing reasons such as the LFP failing to take necessary measures against digital piracy, led to legal action by the governing body to secure funds. This resulted in an agreement that the DAZN-LFP tie-up would be terminated at the end of 2024-25.
Vincent Labrune, president of the LFP, has previously stated on launching its channel: “We have to move forward on our own.” Major soccer leagues across Europe have been considering launching their own channels or streaming services for a domestic audience over recent years.
The summer of 2024 saw a disastrous saga involving LFP's domestic media rights which put eight second-tier Ligue 2 clubs at risk of bankruptcy had a deal not been reached. The situation was further complicated by an overestimation in value by the LFP for its package which resulted in Canal Plus not airing live matches for the first time since 1984. In terms of piracy concerns raised by DAZN, an LFP-backed report found that 37% viewers watched illegally during initial months of 2024-25 season.
