DAZN is more than ever willing to bet on Ligue 1 Disruptive. The word regularly appears in the mouth of Shay Segev, CEO of DAZN, the famous platform often dubbed the “Netflix of sports.” As proof of this, when new broadcasters tend to be as discreet as possible before a tender for the rights to Ligue 1 (the auctions for the 2024-2029 cycle will take place on October 17), DAZN goes on the campaign to defend her project.
In recent days, his boss took advantage of a business meeting in Paris to chat informally with a handful of journalists. The French team of the sports platform, which should soon have dozens of people, would be in the middle of the hiring process… “We have also started conversations with the various distributors (Orange, SFR, Bouygues Telecom, Free),” he said – slipped after a first agreement with Canal+ last month. A way to reassure yourself about the accessibility of your offer.
DAZN already broadcasts two L1 and D1 Arkema matches
After the Mediapro crisis, Shay Segev visibly feels the need to calm down about his project, remembering that his company has always paid its rights, that it is a broadcaster but also a social and sports merchandising platform, while Mediapro is a producer.
Furthermore, in case of success in the L1 rights, DAZN does not want to fall like a hair in the soup in the media space and be already known by the French. This is also the approach that has led it to partner with Canal+ in recent weeks, in particular, to begin co-broadcasting the encrypted channel’s two L1 matches, as well as two Arkema D1 posters (in addition to the Ligue des women champions, the League and the women’s Bundesliga or even the Belgian championship). An investment of several tens of millions of euros.
Already a partner of the Bundesliga in Germany, the Spanish League, Serie A in Italy, the Women’s Champions League in the world, of the NFL, with significant investments (840 million euros per season for the Italian Championship, for example), DAZN will now be linked to Ligue 1 to establish itself firmly in the French market. “We are the main sports broadcaster in Europe, France was missing from our portfolio. Therefore, it makes sense to continue our development here. »
A “freemium” version planned for early 2024
However, in the middle of a tender, Shay Segev must be cautious with his strategy or even with his comments about the billion euros per season that the Professional Football League (LFP) expects for all its rights. As the availability was announced in the colonnes of L’Equipe, the PDG de DAZN simply confirmed the intention of miser lors des enchères des droits de diffusion de la L1 le 17 octobre prochain, et même ceux à l’international a few days later.
If successful, the price of the monthly subscription (14.99 euros today) could vary depending on the prizes purchased (or not) and the amounts spent. As is often the case, everything is a question of price… And like the other candidates, DAZN has set a limit for itself. It remains to be seen which one.
Finally, the platform plans to launch a “freemium” version in early 2024, with a free part, based in particular on advertising, which could give access to summaries or even a live meeting from time to time. The marketing of individual matches is also planned to give consumers flexibility and increase the number of entry points to DAZN.
