One more chapter in the soap opera TV rights of Ligue 1. According to information from
Figaro
, Canal + sent on the evening of Tuesday July 27 a letter to Youssef Al-Obaidly, CEO of beIN Media Group, to terminate his contract of sub-license with the channel of Qatari origin.
Read also: Ligue 1: beIN Sports could be forced to broadcast the matches on the first weekend of August 7
The Vivendi group's encrypted channel is based on the “
3G clause
” of their contract (signed at the end of 2019), which specifies that if “
Canal + buys the football rights from beIN, beIN must for its part do everything possible to ensure that Canal + can dispose of it in the best possible way,
”summarizes a person close to the case.
Since mid-June, and the allocation by the Professional Football League (LFP) of the broadcasting of 80% of L1 matches to Amazon for 250 million euros from the 2021-2022 season, Canal + had not stopped to ask beIN to sue the League for "
distortion of competition
" and "
abuse of dominant position
."
What beIN had refused, until the Nanterre commercial court suggested it do so last Friday, in its decision on the dispute between the two chains.
Indeed, beIN Sports finally initiated proceedings on Tuesday against the LFP, with the Civil Court under article 11.95, as revealed by
Le Figaro
.
A race against time
“It's all a matter of timing,”
comments
someone
close to the issue. Because if beIN has started its proceedings against the LFP, the different parties should not be fixed until the next few days. Canal + took advantage of this period of uncertainty to send this breach of contract. Ten days before the resumption of the League 1 Championship, French football remains in total vagueness. This game of musical chairs between broadcasters calls into question the future of TV rights more than ever.
On Tuesday, the Qatari-born broadcaster and the LFP assigned each other in summary proceedings.
For its part, the League reminded beIN of the obligations and terms of their contract signed in 2018. “
In this contract, it is written that if Canal + does not broadcast, for X or Y reason, one or more matches, beIN Sports will have to automatically distribute them
”, summarizes a person close to the file.
A first hearing is to be held this Friday, July 30, with a decision expected next week.
As
Le Figaro
explained on
Tuesday, beIN Sports could thus be forced to broadcast the two football matches on August 7 and 8 (Troyes-PSG on Saturday at 9 p.m. and Metz-Lille on Sunday at 5 p.m.), if Canal + does not. do not.
The suspense is at its peak.
