Canal Plus threatens football blackout after Amazon wins Ligue 1 rights

Canal Plus has reacted with fury after the French Football League (LFP) voted to accept a bid from Amazon representing 80% of available matches from the start of the new season.

The Financial Times reported Amazon had agreed to pay around €275 million each year for eight matches per week – that’s less than Canal had earlier agreed to pay for its three weekly matches.

“After the failure of the choice of Mediapro in 2018, Canal+ regrets the decision of the LFP to retain the Amazon proposal to the detriment of that of its historic partners Canal + and Bein Sports,” the Vivendi-owned broadcaster said in a statement released to Broadband TV News.

“Canal + will not broadcast Ligue 1”.

The perceived snub to Canal+ is the latest twist for the financing of French top-flight football. Last year, the LFP accepted a €780 million offer from Mediapro for the broadcast of Ligue 1 matches, only for the Spanish-Chinese company to cease payment just four months into its 4 year contract. Amid games played behind closed doors, Canal picked up the pieces through until the end of the season.

Amazon has successfully bid for Premier League rights in the UK and Champions’ League in Germany. In the past week it has been showing the French Open Tennis, breaking the monopoly on Roland Garros from the French public broacasters. Broadband TV News