The French-Qatari pay-TV broadcaster, BeIN Sports, has finally paid the first installment of its rights fee for French Soccer’s top-flight Ligue 1 matches. This payment comes after a significant delay that had repercussions on the financial dynamics within the league.
BeIN was due to make its first rights installment for the 2024-25 campaign in August and a second one in early October. However, it only managed to pay an installment of close to €20 million ($21.6 million) on October 24th, which had been delayed since August.
This delay led to a reduction in payments from LFP (Ligue de Football Professionnel), French soccer's governing body, to Ligue 1 clubs by about 24% as BeIN failed to pay its share on time.
Impact of delays and further complications
While this payment has now been secured, there is still uncertainty surrounding the second installment of rights and sponsorship payments amounting annually to €98.5 million. This payment was due earlier in October but has also been delayed.
Reports suggest that this latest delay occurred because contracts were not signed after BeIN attempted to insert clauses allowing it co-broadcast matches with other pay-TV channels - an aspect not agreed upon during initial rights negotiations. These delays are not new with BeIN; last season saw similar issues when they were late paying a €38 million rights fee citing Ramadan as their reason for delay. Additionally, reports indicate that UEFA is yet to receive its rights fee from Bein for the upcoming European Championship in 2024.
For this season, beIn holds broadcasting rights for one match per week from France's top-tier football league - Ligue 1 and all Ligue 2 matches. The broadcaster is expected to pay a total of €78.5 million per year for the top-flight and €40 million for the second division.
LFP's limited bargaining power
Despite these repeated delays, Ligue 1 has little bargaining power against BeIN. This is primarily because BeIN was one of the only companies that bid for Ligue 1 rights during a media rights sales period earlier this year, which proved controversial and damaging for the LFP.
The French soccer governing body overestimated its package value, leading to strained relations with Canal Plus, one of its primary broadcasters. The delayed tender results also threatened several clubs' financial stability.
While BeIN's delayed payments have been problematic for both the league and its clubs, it seems that they will continue to be an integral part of French football broadcasting due to their significant investment in acquiring broadcasting rights.
