4 December 2023 - 4:15 PM
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IMAGO | The French Football League's (LFP's) President; Vincent Labrune, leaving the French Football Federation's (FFF's) headquarters after attending an extraordinary executive committee meeting, January 2023.
Ligue 1's broadcast conundrum: A reality check on the back of a €1.7 billion private equity injection
- Ligue 1 faces challenges in selling its broadcasting rights, both domestically and in the global rights auction. Despite the President's optimistic stance on the international rights' value, questions arise about the purported tripling in worth.
- The newly established division, LFP Media, tasked with rights sales, grapples with a delicate situation. League executives, striving to demonstrate growth to CVC Private Equity, encounter hindrances from past poor decisions.
- Why it matters: In mid-October, Ligue 1 announced that no bidders matched the initial valuations for domestic rights. There is also doubt about the €200 million valuation for international rights.
- The perspective: French football aspires to rival top European leagues. Can Mbappé's massive popularity replace Messi and Neymar, and will French football fulfill its ambition to be "...the coolest and the most enshrined in today’s youth culture"?
"The EPL coverage in France surpassed what we see in the UK."
If there's even an ounce of truth in this assessment, which was heard during the research to this article, it's ironic that on home soil in France, the Premier League, having outpaced Ligue 1 significantly over the last 15 years, is treated by local broadcasters as a premium – maybe even superior - product.
However, t
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