Ligue 1 finance woes continue as beIN SPORTS miss payments
French Ligue 1 clubs have been notified that they should plan on receiving less money than expected from beIN SPORTS. Both global streaming service DAZN and beIN SPORTS currently share the media rights to the French top flight in France. However, according to a new report, beIN SPORTS is late in making payments to the league.
According to Sportcal, beIN SPORTS has yet to pay its share of the aforementioned deal. As a result, French top-flight teams have been told that they will receive 24% less money than previously expected. The lack of paid funds does not affect the broadcasting deal here in the States. Instead, the late payment is from the EMEA (Europe, the Middle East, and Africa) arm of beIN SPORTS.
beIN SPORTS previously missed a similar deadline in the spring
The issue regarding late payments is nothing new for beIN SPORTS. In fact, the media company previously missed a Ligue 1 financial deadline just last season. The funds in question totaled just over $42 million. beIN SPORTS blamed the delayed payments on the timing of Ramadan. The month-long religious holiday began on the evening of Sunday, March 10th.
Although beIN SPORTS is late in their 2024/25 payment, DAZN has already reportedly paid their share of the agreement.
Several top French teams have experienced financial issues
News of the broadcaster’s missed payments will certainly be disappointing for Ligue 1 and their clubs. The French top-flight was desperately exploring ways to secure big broadcasting rights in recent months. While agreements eventually came, late payments from media companies are the last thing certain clubs need.
The previous situation was so dire that some Ligue 1 clubs could have gone bankrupt without the broadcasting funds. Teams like Lens and Nantes faced the possibility of closing their doors due to the lack of a TV deal. Nevertheless, the domestic broadcasting deal involving DAZN and beIN SPORTS was finally announced in July. The American agreement then followed suit weeks later in August.
Agreements involving the two media companies are now in place in many major countries across the globe. The Ligue de Football Professionnel (LFP), however, could not strike a deal in the United Kingdom. Because of this, French soccer officials created a new direct-to-consumer streaming service for the area. French soccer fans in the UK can now watch every top-fight game via Ligue 1 Pass.
Ligue 1 officials are hoping that they do not experience a major drop in TV ratings with the loss of Kylian Mbappe. The French superstar recently departed Paris Saint-Germain to join Real Madrid. Mbappe was previously the undisputed biggest draw in the entire French top flight. The 2024/25 Ligue 1 campaign recently began on August 16th.
Photo: IMAGO / ZUMA Press Wire