League sells hidden reserves
The English record deal that makes European football tremble
December 5, 2023, 1:13 p.m
The English Premier League is further distancing itself from the rest of the world with its new record media contract and increasing the pressure on the Bundesliga. Other leagues have already failed miserably in their attempts to keep pace with England. The English can only manage the deal with a trick.
When reading the record numbers from the island, the Bundesliga bosses had to rub their eyes. The fact that the English colleagues in the Premier League will in future collect almost two billion euros per season from the sale of national media rights, something that has been feared for months in this country, is fueling fears of the final end of competitiveness.
But it’s not just German professional football that has been left behind before its national rights are sold in the second quarter of next year. The fact that this happened also has to do with the hidden reserves of the Premier League. The good news: These are becoming fewer. The bad news: they still exist. For now, however, the English league has drawn a “wild card”.
The Premier League offered games that have not previously been broadcast live. In England, from the 25/26 season onwards, the Sunday afternoon games will be broadcast live at 3 p.m. for the first time and the last matchday will also be broadcast in its entirety in parallel. Only the “blackout” on Saturday remained untouched. Traditionally in England, the afternoon slot is reserved for amateur sports and stadium spectators. It still remains untouched.
Other leagues are making losses
With their new contract, the English have either cemented their dominance over the rest of the world – and they let their rival leagues on the continent know it too. “The result underlines the strength of the Premier League,” said league boss Richard Masters: “It is proof that we continue to play the best football in the world.”
The rest of Europe can hardly disagree with that. From 2025 onwards, 1.95 billion euros will flow into the coffers of English clubs per season. The contract with the pay TV channels Sky Sports and TNT Sports as well as the public BBC is valid for four years. Never before has so much been paid for football rights; so far the Premier League has collected 1.83 billion per season.
For comparison: Serie A made a loss when the contract was signed at the end of October. Starting next year, the Italians will receive 900 million per season until the 2028/29 season from DAZN and Sky. So far it has been 27.5 million euros more per season.
Things seem to be getting even worse for the French. The LFP league association wanted one billion euros per season between 2024 and 2029 – instead of the previous 624 million. This meant that Ligue 1 failed spectacularly. When the first phase of the tender ended, none of the interested parties met the financial conditions. Now you have to negotiate individually with the potential candidates. The Spaniards can act a little more relaxed. They have assigned their rights until 2027 and are collecting 1.2 billion euros per season.
DFL dreams of reaching the top with superlatives
The English qualification is registered with the German Football League (DFL) with much more interest. Next year, the league association will have to take what the turbulent market offers for the seasons from 2025/2026 to 2028/2029. The clubs in the Bundesliga and the 2nd division currently receive around 1.1 billion euros per season – which already corresponds to a minus of 100 million compared to the previous cycle.
Due to the rumored economic problems of possible interested parties, there has long been speculation about a further decline in revenue. To prevent this, the new DFL managing directors Marc Lenz and Steffen Merkel have been advertising on their own behalf for months. After the clubs’ most recent meeting, one superlative was lined up after the next. “The Bundesliga is a top league,” said Merkel – and announced with regard to the tender in the spring: “We will offer an innovative, top media product at world level.”
However, when looking across the globe, the Premier League’s pioneering role becomes even clearer, as the English are far ahead of all other leagues when it comes to foreign marketing. When adding up national and international revenue, the Premier League stands above all others with 3.3 billion euros per season. Spain (1.49 billion), Germany (1.37), Italy (1.30) and France (790 million) only have envy – and fear.