French soccer’s top-flight Ligue 1 has announced the launch of its direct-to-consumer (DTC) broadcast channel – named Ligue 1 Plus. The new channel will be distributed by telecom and TV heavyweights Boygues Telecom, Free, Orange, SFR as well as the DAZN OTT streaming service.
The introduction of this nascent TV project marks a significant shift in the broadcasting landscape for French soccer. In its inaugural season, Ligue 1 Plus will domestically cover eight out of nine games per matchday exclusively from the start of the upcoming 2025-26 season on August 15th.
The remaining match will be broadcast live by international sports broadcaster BeIN Sports while being shown on a delayed basis on Ligue 1 Plus.
Additional coverage and subscription details
In addition to regular matches, viewers can look forward to live coverage of special events such as the league’s season-opening Trophee des Champions super cup competition and promotion/relegation playoffs at season's end. The final two weeks of each season are also set to be aired in their entirety due to simultaneous scheduling.
Subscriptions are initially priced at €14.99 ($17.66) per month - significantly lower than last season's primary domestic rightsholder DAZN was charging - with strong sales crucial for keeping much of Ligue 1 financially viable. For its first year, LFP aims to attract one million subscribers; a figure it hopes to more than double over subsequent seasons reaching between 2.2 million and 2.5 million subscribers within four campaigns.
Funding for this ambitious project has been supported by payments from DAZN and BeIN which have contributed towards an impressive startup fund totalling around €165 million. Of this, approximately €66 million has been allocated to cover channel costs, with between €33 million and €35 million already spent on production.
Response to broadcast partnership collapse
The decision to launch an in-house Ligue 1 linear TV channel as the primary distributor of the competition’s main rights package comes after the collapse of its broadcast partnership with DAZN. This previous agreement covered eight fixtures per gameweek through a deal worth €325 million while BeIN Sports aired the remaining game via a contract running through 2025-26.
With the end of this BeIN-LFP deal, it is likely that Ligue 1 Plus will show every match in the 2026-27 season.
LFP Media director general, Nicolas de Tavernost, said:
“We are taking control of our own destiny, we expect a difficult couple of years ahead when it comes to the establishment of an asset, the returns of this channel will be progressive.”
Ligue 1 Plus aims to offer more than just live and delayed game broadcasts. The channel will also host magazine content produced by Mediawan, documentary series’, and other ancillary programming, providing a comprehensive viewing experience for fans.
