tvsm global report 2015...tvsm global report 2015 4 introduction live and short-form, into markets...

TVSM GLOBAL REPORT

2015

Published November 2014

© 2014 SportBusiness Group

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without the permission of the publisher.

The information contained in this publication is believed to be correct at the time of going to press. While care has been taken to ensure that the information is accurate, the publishers can accept no responsibility for any errors or omissions or for changes to the details given.

Readers are cautioned that forward-looking statements including forecasts are not guarantees of future performance or results and involve risks and uncertainties that cannot be predicted or quantified and, consequently, the actual performance of companies mentioned in this report and the industry as a whole may differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements.

Editorial and research team:

Chris Barnes

Kevin McCullagh

John Manning

Joseph Rivers

Lukas Zajancauskas

Linda Buskell

Frank Dunne

Richard Welbirg

Robin Jellis

Typesetting: Character Design, Hereford

Published by: TV Sports Markets, part of SportBusiness Group

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TVSM GLOBAL REPORT 2015 iii

CONTENTS

CONTENTS

1 METHODOLOGY

2 iNTRODuCTiON

5 THE TOP 10 SPORTS

9 THE TOP 20 PROPERTiES

18 THE TOP 10 MARKETS

30 THE TOP 10 DEALS OF 2013-14

TVSM GLOBAL REPORT 2015 1

METHODOLOGY

The information in this report has been compiled

utilizing the TV Sports Markets database of sports

rights values. The value of rights for properties not

covered by the database, and for upcoming deals

not yet announced, has been either gathered from

figures reported in the media or estimated by the

TV Sports Markets team.

The annual values equate to the total annual

value of media rights generated by the property,

sport or country in the calendar year.

The media-rights revenue for competitions

with seasons spanning two calendar years, such as

European football leagues, has been apportioned

to single calendar years. For example, the total

for calendar year 2014 has been calculated as

the average of the 2013-14 and 2014-15 revenue

figures.

Periodic events such as the Olympics and Fifa

World Cup are apportioned across the entire period

between events rather than the single year in which

the event is held. For example the 2014 Fifa World

Cup is spread over the 2011-14 period.

Non-uS dollar denominated values have been

converted into uS dollars at the exchange rate on

the date of the deal. The growth rates of properties,

countries and sports are also in many cases based

on figures converted to uS dollars, and therefore

are affected by exchange rate fluctuations.

METHODOLOGY


iNTRODuCTiON

Recession-proof rightsThe total value of the global sports-rights market

in 2014 is just under $36.8bn (€29.5bn). On the basis

of deals already concluded and some estimates, we

expect the market to grow at a rate of nine per cent

in 2015, seven per cent in 2016 and four per cent in

2017, to a total of $44.7bn.

The market experienced single-digit growth in

2011 (two per cent), 2012 (six per cent) and 2013

(seven per cent).

Between 2013 and 2014, however, the value

increased by 15 per cent, from just over $32bn.

This came from the beginning of big new deals

for the world’s most valuable property, American

football’s National Football League, and increases

in the value of football properties around the world,

particularly the English Premier League. New deals

for the NFL lifted its annual income by over $2bn

this year, and for the Premier League by about

$600m.

The growth between 2010 and 2014, and the

projected growth through to 2017, demonstrates

that the media rights to top sport are ‘recession

proof.’ The industry has not suffered major

aftershocks from the financial crisis of 2008 and the

economic crisis which followed, from 2009 onwards.

Growth in some markets, especially in Europe,

stalled between 2009 and 2013 because of the

impact of the crisis on consumer spending, with the

knock-on effects of reduced advertising spending

and stagnating or diminishing pay-television

subscriptions. But even in the European markets

hardest hit, such as Spain and Greece, there are

already signs of recovery in sports rights values.

Growth factors A number of factors explain the year-on-year

growth of sports media rights. Several are

underlying, structural factors. Others are specific to

regions or even individual markets.

The broader factors include:

•Continuing economic growth in large parts of

Asia, Latin America and Africa.

•The continued increase in the penetration of pay-

television, including heavy investment by many

pay-television operators in bundled, multi-play

offerings.

•increasing penetration of fast broadband

services, driving the take-up of streamed content.

•The rapid expansion in the sale of mobile devices

with wireless internet.

•The explosion of social media platforms.

iNTRODuCTiON

Sports media rights, total global value ($m)

Source: TV Sports Markets

27,401.6

2010

28,041.6

2011

29,856.0

2012

32,038.5

2013

36,836.9

2014

39,995.3

2015

42,878.4

2016

44,670.2

2017


iNTRODuCTiON

•The emergence of aggressive new players in the

rights market, often operating on a global level

in competition with strong local operators.

•Sports bodies becoming smarter at exploiting

their media assets.

•Consolidation in the sports-rights agency market,

with a small number of wealthy companies

paying strategic fees to acquire premium

content.

•Changing viewing habits, in particular multi-

screen activity.

•The creation of new, media-friendly competition

formats, such as Twenty20 cricket.

•Fragmentation in media markets, reducing the

types of content which can regularly deliver

large audiences.

•improved broadcast technologies, such as

HD, which enable media operators to earn

incremental revenues on sports content.

For broadcasters reliant on advertising income, top

live sports events have a premium value because

they can deliver large audiences on a regular basis.

Sport also delivers hard-to-get, and therefore more

valuable, audience demographics, such as young

males.

Season-long competitions are the most valuable

content for pay-television operators, as they help

lock customers in on a medium-term basis. These

competitions are also of value to commercial

broadcasters as they create ‘appointment to view’

programming around which brands can build

advertising campaigns.

The major one-off events, such as the Olympic

Games, the Fifa World Cup and the uefa European

Championship, were historically shown only on

free-to-air television. Outside the uS, this largely

meant state-funded broadcasters. However,

a significant proportion of the two football

competitions, and to a lesser extent the Olympics,

has been sold to pay-television.

During the great expansion of pay-television

services in the 1990s, top sport and first-run

Hollywood films were the main drivers of

subscriptions. The expansion of OTT services such

as Netflix has diminished the relative importance of

films to pay-television companies, many of whom

are directing more of their content investment into

live sport.

As the process of fragmentation continues,

allied with consumers getting used to accessing

content where, how and when they want it, both the

linear television schedule and the bundle-and-buy-

through model of traditional television will come

under pressure. in this environment, the scramble

for sport is likely to become even more intense than

at present.

Live experienceThe bulk of the value in sports rights is in live

events, and within this in a relatively small number

of ‘premium’ sports properties. There are many

second- and third-tier sports properties which also

earn a licence fee for their broadcast rights, but for

many securing production costs is the best that can

be hoped for. Many smaller sports pay for their own

production and many others cannot even buy space

in the schedules of the principal broadcasters.

The explosion of internet-based services was

expected by some analysts to negatively affect the

value of traditional television rights. This has not

proved to be the case. Smartphones and tablets

and other mobile devices have increased the range

of the live event (usually distributed on channels

operated by the traditional media operators) and

have helped create new ways of engaging with

sport which add, rather than subtract, value for

rights-holders.

Some entirely new revenue streams, such as that

from betting rights, have come into existence over

the last decade.

The Google-owned video-sharing website

YouTube is well established as a complementary

platform for sports bodies to get their content, both


iNTRODuCTiON

live and short-form, into markets where there is

little or no broadcast coverage. Operators share

advertising revenues with YouTube, with some now

earning over $1m per year from the platform. As

YouTube expands (according to its own projections)

from 2bn users to 5bn users in the next five years,

these revenues will increase.

To date, the other major social media platforms

– including Facebook and Twitter – have largely

been used by sports bodies to expand their reach

and deepen fan engagement. However, they are

increasingly being used to distribute short-form

video content, usually carrying short pre-roll

advertisements, and in future will increase in

importance in the revenue mix.

Critically, perhaps, most available audience

research data suggests that far from cannibalising

live audiences, short-form digital media content

hits completely different audiences and can drive

people back to the live event on a different screen.


THE TOP 10 SPORTS

The top 10 sports generated a combined $33.1bn

(€26.5bn) from sports media rights revenue in 2014,

90 per cent of the global total. The top 10 sports are

forecast to be worth $39.6bn by 2017, a 57-per-cent

increase from the beginning of the decade.

Eight sports generated over $1bn in 2014, one

more than in 2013, and the top 10 will all surpass

this level in 2015 with cricket and golf joining the

$1bn club. Only six sports received more than $1bn

in annual media rights revenue at the beginning of

the decade.

Football is the world’s most valuable sport,

generating $13.1bn in 2014, providing 36 per cent

of the global total. The world’s favourite game

generates over twice the level of the second-largest

sport, American football, and is set to grow further

to $15.8bn by 2017.

uS sports dominate the rest of the table, with

the country’s four big professional sports and

uS college sport providing five of the top eight

positions. The uS will be one of the strongest

growth markets over the 2010 to 2017 period which

we are measuring, with the four big leagues set to

increase by between 65 and 117 per cent, driven by

large domestic deals.

The uS provides the largest sports properties in

six of the 10 sports. This is due to increase to seven

in 2015 when media rights revenue from Nascar

overtakes Formula One.

1. Football Football is forecast to grow by 55 per cent over

the 2010-17 period, a $5.7bn increase. unlike

most other sports in the top 10, no single property

dominates in football with the leading rights-holder,

the English Premier League, providing 23 per cent

of the sport’s global total. However, football media

rights revenue is highly dependent on the largest

properties, with the top 10 worth $10.1bn in 2014,

77 per cent of football’s total value.

THE TOP 10 SPORTS

The top 10 sports, ranked by 2014 media-rights income ($m)

Rank Sport 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017

1 Football 10,191.0 10,622.6 11,164.1 12,206.7 13,135.6 13,856.3 15,249.9 15,846.6

2 American football 4,290.0 4,290.0 4,385.0 4,385.0 6,505.0 7,005.0 7,080.0 7,080.0

3 Baseball 2,057.6 2,084.1 2,188.0 2,317.8 3,326.9 3,511.4 3,608.0 3,651.0

4 uS college sport 1,934.9 1,934.9 2,068.8 2,202.8 2,363.5 2,524.2 2,530.3 2,530.3

5 Basketball 1,819.2 1,843.0 1,894.0 1,962.7 2,022.5 2,072.6 2,983.1 3,882.2

6 Motorsport 1,273.0 1,273.0 1,323.6 1,394.8 1,455.7 1,748.1 1,847.2 1,847.2

7 Multi-sport events 981.6 981.6 981.6 1,175.3 1,175.3 1,175.3 1,175.3 1,205.0

8 ice hockey 760.2 895.5 977.7 999.2 1,175.1 1,343.4 1,347.1 1,347.1

9 Golf 949.4 956.8 970.7 980.5 980.5 1,087.6 1,087.6 1,087.6

10 Cricket 935.5 936.3 941.5 945.6 920.8 1,036.8 1,039.3 1,086.1



THE TOP 10 SPORTS

The top 10 sports, 2014 media-rights income ($m)

14,000.0

12,000.0

10,000.0

8,000.0

6,000.0

4,000.0

2,000.0

0

Football American football

Baseball College sports

Basketball Motorsport Multi-sport events

Ice hockey Golf Cricket


13,135.6

6,505.0

3,326.92,363.5

2,022.5 1,455.7 1,175.3 1,175.1 980.5 920.8

European club football dominates, with the big

five European leagues and the uefa Champions

League generating $8.2bn in 2014, 63 per cent of

the total.

2. American footballThe American football total is composed entirely of

the global revenue for the National Football League

(NFL). uS college American football is classified

under college sports, while indoor formats are also

counted as a separate category.

The NFL’s rights value is almost entirely

generated by domestic deals in the uS. Thanks

to new NFL domestic deals beginning in 2014-15,

American football will experience strong growth of

about 65 per cent over the 2010-17 period.

3. BaseballMajor League Baseball (MLB) is by far the largest

baseball rights-fee generator, providing 92 per cent

of the total in 2014.

Baseball media-rights revenue grew strongly in

2014 thanks to the start of new MLB domestic rights

deals with broadcasters Turner Broadcasting, Fox

and ESPN. These deals were renewals and each was

more than double the value of the previous deal.

Together, they are worth $1.6bn per year.

Baseball will be the joint second-largest growing

sport over the 2010-17 period on 77 per cent.

4. US college sportuS college sport generated $2.4bn in 2014 and is set

to grow by seven per cent in 2015.

Seven uS college properties generate over

$200m per season.

The leading property, the NCAA, provides 33

per cent of the total, and the top five properties

account for 73 per cent.

5. BasketballThe global basketball total is dominated by North

America’s National Basketball Association (NBA),

which provides 92 per cent of the sport’s total in

2014 and is forecast to increase to 96 per cent by

2017.

Basketball is forecast to be the top growing

sport over the 2010-17 period, increasing by 113

per cent to $3.9bn on the back of a new $24bn,

nine-year domestic NBA deal with Time Warner and

ABC/ESPN, announced in October 2014. Basketball

is expected to overtake both uS college sport

and baseball to be the third-largest media-rights


THE TOP 10 SPORTS

revenue generator in 2017.

6. MotorsportMotorsport is dominated by two properties which

provide 85 per cent of the $1.5bn global total in

2014. Formula One is the largest generator of

sports media rights revenue among the motorsport

formats in 2014, but is set to be overtaken by the

uS-based Nascar in 2015. Nascar has new rights

deals starting that year with broadcasters Fox and

NBCuniversal, worth a combined $820m.

7. Multi-sport eventsThe multi-sport competitions total is almost entirely

due to the Olympic Games. Olympics media rights

revenue has been divided over four-year ‘Olympic

cycles’ – covering one winter Olympics and one

summer Olympics.

The Olympic Games account for 98 per cent of

the multi-sport total, with the balance from events

including the Asian Games and the Commonwealth

Games.

8. Ice hockeyice hockey media-rights revenue increased by 18

per cent in 2014 to $1.2bn and is set to overtake

multi-sport events in 2015.

As with the other big American professional

sports, the total is almost entirely based on the

North American domestic league, with the National

Hockey League’s (NHL) $1bn media-rights income

in 2014 accounting for 87 per cent of the ice hockey

total.

However, unlike the other major American

leagues, from the 2014-15 season in the NHL

most of the value comes from Canada, when a

new Canadian deal begins. in November 2013,

broadcaster Rogers Communications paid $5bn in

a 12-year deal for NHL rights, Canada’s largest ever

rights deal and more than double the amount paid

in the uS.

9. GolfGolf has the lowest predicted growth rate of the top

10 sports, at 15 per cent over the 2010-17 period.

The golf total is driven by the uS PGA Tour,

The top 10 sports, share of global media-rights income in 2014


Global total:

$36,837m

Football36%

American football18%

Baseball9%

Others10%

College sports6%

Motorsport4%

Basketball5%

Multi-sport events 3%

Golf 3%

ice hockey3%

Cricket 3%


THE TOP 10 SPORTS

which generated $550m in rights revenue in 2014,

over half the sport’s annual value. The three other

uS-based ‘major’ tournaments provide $215m.

The sport is set to grow by 11 per cent in 2015 on

the back of a new domestic rights deal for the uS

Open, which doubles its value, and at the same time

takes golf’s global total over $1bn.

10. Cricketunlike most other sports in the top 10, no single

event drives the cricket total. The largest property

in 2014, the global rights for Cricket Australia –

covering Australian domestic and national team

cricket – accounted for 19 per cent of the total.

The top five cricket properties, all of which

generate over $100m per year in 2014, provide 74

per cent of the sport’s total.

Cricket is expected to be the second-slowest

growing sport in the top 10, with a 16-per-cent

increase over the 2010-17 period.

The top 10 sports, predicted growth in media-rights income, 2010-17

120

110

100

90

80

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

0

Basketball Baseball Ice hockey American football

Football Motorsport College sports

Multisport events

Cricket Golf


113%

77% 77%

65%55%

45%

31%23%

16% 15%


THE TOP 20 PROPERTiES

Global sports media rights value is concentrated

in a small number of the most popular properties.

The top 20 properties account for 72 per cent of our

global total in 2014 – $26.6bn out of $36.8bn. This

figure has stayed pretty steady – at around 70 per

cent – each year since 2010.

in most markets worldwide, pay-television is

the biggest source of rights fees, and only a small

handful of properties in each – and sometimes only

one – are compelling enough to drive pay-television

take-up.

One notable exception is the uS, where the huge

television advertising market means broadcasters

can afford to place top properties such as National

Football League American football on free-to-air

channels.

The massive value of the uS market is

underlined by its seven entries in the top 20, which


The top 20 properties, ranked by 2014 media-rights income ($m)

Rank Sport Property 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014

1 American football NFL 4,290.0 4,290.0 4,385.0 4,385.0 6,505.0

2 Baseball MLB 1,815.8 1,840.8 1,942.8 2,072.1 3,067.5

3 Football English Premier League 1,593.1 1,770.8 1,770.8 2,368.1 2,965.4

4 Basketball NBA 1,676.0 1,698.5 1,745.0 1,802.3 1,858.5

5 Football uefa Champions League 1,308.4 1,350.8 1,424.3 1,492.2 1,492.2

6 Football italian Serie A 1,182.1 1,281.9 1,285.7 1,302.9 1,329.3

7 Multi-sport Olympics 962.5 962.5 962.5 1,154.3 1,154.3

8 ice hockey NHL 636.9 765.4 843.5 860.9 1,024.6

9 Football French Ligue 1 1,010.2 1,010.2 968.4 926.6 926.6

10 Football Spanish Liga 836.0 836.0 867.0 898.1 898.1

11 uS college sport NCAA 771.0 771.0 771.0 771.0 771.0

12 Motorsport Formula 1 511.8 511.8 552.2 621.6 668.2

13 Football Fifa World Cup 602.0 612.5 612.5 612.5 612.5

14 Football Bundesliga 1 369.5 385.8 421.2 510.6 593.6

15 Football Brazilian Série A 243.0 243.0 586.0 586.0 586.0

16 Motorsport Nascar 575.0 575.0 575.0 575.0 575.0

17 Golf PGA Tour 541.6 541.6 541.6 550.0 550.0

18 Football Turkish Süper Lig 310.5 340.5 380.0 417.5 432.5

19 Football uefa Europa League 288.6 306.4 304.8 296.4 296.4

20 Aussie Rules Australian Football League 114.7 114.7 274.0 274.0 274.0




will generate $14.4bn in 2014, 39 per cent of the

global total. The uS entries rely on their domestic

market for the vast majority of their income.

Properties like uS college sports events and Nascar

have limited appeal internationally compared to

the top European football leagues, Formula One or

the Olympics.

The NFL’s lead as the world’s most valuable

property is so great – it’s worth nearly 18 per cent of

the total global value of sports media rights in 2014

– that it is unlikely to be threatened soon, despite

strong growth among the chasing pack.

Football is the dominant sport among the

top properties, accounting for 10 of the top 20,

or $10.1bn out of $26.6bn. This is despite being a

relatively minor, although growing, sport in the uS.

European football in particular is the driver, with six

properties – the ‘big five’ European leagues plus the

uefa Champions League – accounting for $8.2bn.

Outside American sports and football,

the properties that make the top 20 are from

motorsport, golf and Australian rules football, and

the multi-sport Olympics.

The value of the top 20 has increased by just

over 35 per cent since 2010. The Brazilian Série

A and Australian Football League have been the

biggest movers, increasing in value by just over, and

just below, 140 per cent, respectively.

Five other properties increased by over 50

per cent – the English Premier League (up 86 per

The top 20 properties, growth in media-rights income, 2010-14


141%

139%

86%

69%

61%

61%

52%

39%

31%

20%

14%

12%

11%

7%

3%

2%

2%

0%

0%

-8%

Brazilian Série A

Australian Football League

English Premier League

MLB

NHL

Bundesliga 1

NFL

Turkish Super Lig

Formula One

Olympics

Uefa Champions League

Italian Serie A

NBA

Spanish Liga

Uefa Europa League

Fifa World Cup

PGA Tour

Nascar

NCAA

French Ligue 1



cent), Major League Baseball (up 69 per cent),

the National Hockey League (up 61 per cent), the

German Bundesliga 1 (up 61 per cent) and the NFL

(up 52 per cent).

Two properties, Nascar and the NCAA, remained

steady due to long-term deals. The French Ligue 1 is

the only one of the top 20 to have dropped in value

significantly, down by eight per cent.

Properties 1 to 10

1. National Football LeagueThe NFL tops the list as it is the most popular sports

property in the world’s biggest consumer market.

The league derives almost all of its rights income

from its domestic market, as American football’s

popularity outside the uS is relatively limited.

NFL rights values leapt by 48 per cent this

year thanks to new long-term rights deals with

broadcasters CBS, Fox, NBC and ESPN, and telco

Verizon. They will increase again next year thanks

to a new deal with pay-television platform DirecTV.

Most of the new NFL deals are for long terms, so

major changes in its rights income are not expected

for several years. The CBS, Fox, NBC and DirecTV

deals run to 2022-23, the ESPN deal to 2021-22, and

the Verizon deal to 2017-18.

The league’s rights income may increase during

the contracts depending on how the broadcasters’

payments are structured. Often in long-term deals

the annual rights value will increase over time. Our

tables show average annual values to allow for

comparison between properties.

2. Major League BaseballThe uS baseball league is another property

powered by its lucrative domestic market. Our

figure for the MLB includes two types of domestic

deals – those with nationwide broadcasters,

and those with regional broadcasters. Regional

deals are agreed by teams directly with local

broadcasters. in some cases, the teams have a stake

in the broadcaster and receive a yearly income

from it, instead of selling their rights in a traditional

fixed-term contract. An example is the New York

Yankees and New York regional broadcaster the

Yes Network.

Regional deals have been accounted for

under the MLB total to allow for comparison with

competitions like Spanish football’s La Liga, whose

clubs sell their rights individually.

The MLB’s income from nationwide broadcasters

The top 10 properties, 2014 media-rights income ($m)

7,000.0

6,000.0

5,000.0

4,000.0

3,000.0

2,000.0

1,000.0

0

NFL MLB English Premier League

NBA Uefa Champions

League

Italian Serie A

Olympics NHL French Ligue 1

Spanish Liga


6,505.0

3,067.5 2,965.4

1,858.5 1,492.2 1,329.3 1,154.3 1,024.6 926.6 898.1



amounts to about $1.65bn, and regional income

to about $1.4bn in 2014. Renewed nationwide

deals beginning in 2014 brought big fee increases

– ESPN’s fee increased by 136 per cent, Fox’s by

104 per cent, and broadcaster Turner Broadcasting

System’s by 120 per cent. The MLB also has a deal

with DirecTV.

There were also some major regional increases.

The Los Angeles Dodgers deal beginning this year

with Time Warner Cable – under which the two

launched a joint-venture channel, SportsNet LA –

led to a 211-per-cent increase in the team’s rights

income, according to local media. There are big

variations in the value of regional deals, depending

on the profile of the team, and the value of its local

television market. At the top end of the scale, the

Dodgers are reported to earn $140m per season.

At the bottom, teams including the Milwaukee

Brewers, Kansas City Royals, Miami Marlins and

Tampa Bay Rays have been reported by uS media

to earn about $20m per year.

MLB’s income from nationwide deals is not

expected to change dramatically for several years –

the Fox, Turner and ESPN deals all run to 2021. Most

of the league’s biggest teams also now have long-

term regional deals, some running into the 2030s

and even the 2040s. One exception is the Chicago

Cubs, a successful team in a valuable media market

which has two regional deals, one of which runs out

this year.

3. English Premier LeagueThe world’s most valuable football property is in the

middle of a three-season rights cycle, from 2013-14

to 2015-16, in which it enjoyed strong increases in

domestic and international rights income. unlike

the uS properties, a large proportion of the league’s

income is earned outside its home market – 41 per

cent in the current cycle.

Domestic rights income growth appeared to

have stalled until telco BT emerged as a new player

in the uK pay-television market at the last auction,

leading to a 63-per-cent increase in domestic fees.

The next domestic rights auction, in the first

half of 2015, is expected to again yield a strong fee

increase, as BT and rival Sky go head-to-head for

The top 10 properties, share of global media-rights income in 2014


Global total:

$36,837m

NFL18%

MLB8%

English Premier League8%

NBA5%

uefa Champions League4%

italian Serie A4%

Olympics3%

NHL3%

French Ligue 13%

Spanish Liga2%

Others42%



what is the uK’s biggest pay-television subscription

driver.

The Premier League has been earning strong

increases in its international rights income for

several cycles. While the rate of growth is slowing

– international fees increased 54 per cent this

cycle, compared to 90 per cent in the cycle before –

another international fees increase can be expected

in the next cycle. The league’s popularity around

the world remains strong, and pay-television is still

growing in many of the markets where the property

is popular.

Our Premier League figures are different in

2012, 2013 and 2014 as the numbers are adjusted to

account for the fact that the league’s income is on a

seasonal basis straddling two years – e.g. 2014-15.

4. National Basketball AssociationThe world’s top basketball league is set for an

increase of around 180 per cent in domestic rights

income from 2016-17 under new long-term deals

– running to 2024-25 – with Turner and The Walt

Disney Company.

The NBA income includes fees earned by its

teams via regional deals, which vary hugely. Figures

reported by the uS media range from, at the top

end of the scale, $150m per season for the Los

Angeles Lakers, under a deal with pay-television

platform Time Warner Cable. At the other end, the

indian Pacers are reported to earn $5m to $8m

per season in a deal with their local version of

nationwide broadcaster Fox.

We put NBA regional income at about $690m in

2014, with national deals worth about $930m. The

NBA has the most valuable international rights of

the big four uS leagues, at an estimated $240m in

2014.

5. Uefa Champions LeagueEurope’s blue-riband club football competition has

steadily grown in media rights value since its launch

in 1992-93, and is set for an increase of around 35

per cent in its next media rights cycle, from 2015-16

to 2017-18.

Most of its income is generated in the uK,

Germany, italy, Spain and France – homes to

Europe’s big five economies and football leagues.

The uK in particular will deliver a strong increase in

the new cycle. The combined value of Champions

League and uefa Europa League rights went up by

over 100 per cent in the latest deal, with BT Sport,

which snatched the rights from rival Sky.

The Champions League’s appeal is not limited to

Europe, and it is also generating strong and growing

rights fees in regions including sub-Saharan Africa,

the Middle East and North Africa, Southeast Asia

and Latin America.

The competition’s cachet with football fans, and

growing popularity in developing pay-television

markets, looks to ensure rights fee income growth

in future cycles.

6. Italian Serie AThe italian football league is the main pay-

television subscription-driving property in italy.

Competition for its domestic rights between the

market’s two main pay-television broadcasters, Sky

italia and Mediaset Premium, has driven up their

value.

in deals agreed so far for the next cycle, 2015-

16 to 2017-18, its domestic rights fees will increase

by just under 14 per cent, to $1.3bn per season. The

league still has two minor rights packages left to

sell.

Serie A clubs do not see all of this income –

some is paid to its agency partner infront Sports &

Media, which sells the rights on its behalf. infront

is the league’s domestic rights sales agent in deals

running until 2020-21. it guarantees the league a

certain amount per season.

Serie A’s international rights fees are set to

increase by nearly 60 per cent, under a renewal

with another agency, MP & Silva, for rights outside

italy. About 12 per cent of Serie A’s income comes



from its international rights in the current cycle,

2012-13 to 2014-15.

Serie A is not considered to have major potential

for domestic rights fee growth in the near future for

several reasons, including: its clubs’ competitiveness

in continental European competitions like the

Champions League has declined; the weak italian

economy; and slow growth at Sky italia and

Mediaset.

However, continuing strong interest in European

football and pay-television growth in other markets

mean that its international rights have potential for

growth.

7. OlympicsThe enduring power of the Olympics is shown by its

high position on the list and continuing rights fee

growth. it’s worth remembering that the Olympics

delivers a total of just over two weeks of television

content every two years – taking into account both

the winter and the summer Games – compared

to the hundreds or thousands of hours provided

annually by some of the properties surrounding it

on the list.

The uS is by far the biggest market for the rights,

currently accounting for nearly 50 per cent of the

2014 figure. Outside the uS, the event generates

decent rights fees comparable to other sports

properties in almost every advanced media market,

including Europe’s big five; Japan and South Korea

in Asia; Australia; and in Latin America.

The property’s weaker regions for rights fees

are sub-Saharan Africa; the Middle East and North

Africa; and the indian subcontinent.

We have annualised the value of all Olympics

deals over a four-year Olympics cycle – the typical

time period for which the international Olympic

Committee does deals, covering one winter and one

summer Olympics.

8. National Hockey LeagueThe NHL, North America’s top ice hockey league,

generates the vast majority of its rights fee income

in its home markets of Canada and the uS. Like

the MLB and NBA, a significant percentage of the

NHL figure comes from regional deals agreed by its

Property ranking groups, share of global media-rights income in 2014


Global total:

$36,837m

Properties ranked 1-10

58%

Properties ranked 11-2015%



Other properties18%



teams, as opposed to those agreed centrally by the

league.

Canada roared past the uS in terms of the value

of central rights deals in 2014-15, with a new deal

worth $417m per season, compared to the $200m

per season being generated in the uS. This was the

result of an ambitious bid by Canadian broadcaster

Rogers, which snatched the rights from its major

rival, and long-term Canadian NHL broadcaster,

Bell Media. The deal brought the NHL a 167-per-

cent increase in its Canadian fee.

The uS and Canada deals are both long-term,

until 2020-21 and 2025-26 respectively, so NHL

central rights income will not change dramatically

in the near future.

Regional deals are estimated to account for an

additional $510m in 2014.

9. Spanish LigaSpain’s top football league is the country’s main

pay-television subscription-driving property, and

has enjoyed increasing rights fee income on the

back of this.

The league’s media-rights value both

domestically and internationally has been

enhanced by the growing power of its two biggest

teams, Real Madrid and Barcelona, arguably the

biggest-profile teams in world football.

Spain’s faltering economy and slow pay-

television growth have meant that domestic fee

increases have not been spectacular in recent

seasons. Domestic income went up 13 per cent in

the 2012-13 to 2014-15 cycle, and 8 per cent in the

cycle before that, covering 2009-10 to 2011-12.

The league’s teams negotiate their rights deals

individually, a situation historically supported by

the big two clubs as it ensured they didn’t have to

share their media rights income with the others.

in other, collectively-sold European football

leagues, rights income is split in a way that limits

the difference in earnings between the bigger and

smaller teams.

The situation in Spain may be about to change,

with laws expected to be passed to introduce

collective selling from 2016-17. it remains to be

seen what impact this will have on rights fees. The

Spanish pay-television market has become more

competitive in the last year, as telco Telefónica has

been building up its pay-television business and

investing heavily in sport.

Most of the Liga’s rights fee income comes from

domestic deals – 75 per cent currently, with 25 per

cent coming from international rights. The league

will be expecting more international rights fee

growth for the same reasons as the Premier League

and Serie A – popularity of European football in

growing pay-television markets – as well as the

attractiveness of Real Madrid and Barcelona.

10. French Ligue 1Rights fee growth for France’s top football league

stuttered after a huge rise in the 2005-06 to 2007-08

cycle, but returned in the most recent deals, agreed

this year and beginning in 2016-17, so not reflected

in our table.

The league earns most of its income

domestically – 95 per cent in the current cycle. in

2005-06, pay-television broadcaster Canal Plus paid

an increase of about 60 per cent for the domestic

rights to knock competitor TPS out of the market.

Despite the emergence of a well-funded competitor

for Canal Plus – in the shape of Qatari company

beiN Media Group – the league’s domestic income

actually dropped in the current cycle. The league’s

president said beiN’s bid saved the league from a

‘catastrophic’ drop.

At the most recent auction, competition between

Canal Plus and beiN brought a 20-per-cent increase.

Some had expected a stronger increase – being

backed by the Qatari state, and with several big

wins against Canal Plus in the rights market under

its belt, beiN had the aura of a heavyweight bidder

spoiling for a fight. The Ligue 1 auction suggested

that beiN may not be bent on totally dominating



the market, as was once thought.

The league’s international rights value is held in

check by its position as the weakest of the big five

European leagues, and because it has a relatively

small number of major international stars. The

latter has changed somewhat in recent years, with

Qatari investors backing star player acquisitions by

the Paris Saint-Germain team.

Properties 10 to 20

Football propertiesThe world’s biggest sport accounts for five of the

remaining top properties, covering two national

team properties and four club properties.

The German Bundesliga 1 and Brazilian Série

A represent two properties with bright futures in

terms of rights values. Both are based in growing

pay-television markets, which have delivered rights

fee increases in recent seasons and look set to do

so again. Germany’s market looks the weaker as it

is dominated by one operator, Sky Deutschland. But

German football is on a high, and there remains the

possibility that another pay-television operator will

emerge to challenge Sky at the next rights auction.

The Turkish football league, the Süper Lig,

entered the media rights big time in 2010-11, when

its domestic rights fees increased by over 125 per

cent in a deal with pay-television operator Digiturk.

There have since been extensions of the deal,

the most recent covering 2015-16 and 2016-17

and worth over $475m per season. This is despite

pay-television struggling in Turkey, due to factors

including a relatively poor market and a large

number of free-to-air channels.

The Fifa World Cup achieved a small, 2-per-cent

increase in media-rights income for the 2014 World

Cup compared to the 2010 event. The tournament

is a massive audience-driver in countries around

the world, but rights fee growth has slowed in some

mature markets such as the uK and Germany. it

doesn’t attract major interest from pay-television

broadcasters as a four-week tournament every four

years is not very useful in attracting or retaining

subscribers.

uefa’s second-tier continental club tournament

the Europa League remains a hugely valuable rights

property, despite suffering from a declining profile

in the shadow of its bigger brother the Champions

League.

uefa told TV Sports Markets in May 2013 that it

expects the Europa League to increase in value in

the next cycle, 2015-16 to 2017-18. The governing

body has changed the tournament’s rules to make it

more attractive for teams and audiences, including

by increasing the number of competing teams

from Europe’s top leagues, and giving a Champions

League qualification place to the Europa League

winner.

The Europa League is packaged together with

the Champions League in rights deals in many

markets by uefa and its rights sales agency Team

Marketing.

Motorsport propertiesFormula One is currently the most valuable

motorsport property in the world, although that

looks set to change next year when new deals for

the uS-based Nascar series kick in. Like many other

uS sports, Nascar is almost completely reliant on

its home market for rights income. And like other

top uS sports, this is enough to make it one of the

world’s most valuable properties.

Formula One has much broader international

appeal. it generates strong rights fees in markets

around the world, helped by the international

footprint of its circuits, teams and drivers.

Formula One is also expected to grow in rights

value in the coming years. One of the factors driving

this is an increasing adoption of pay-television.

Formerly a free-to-air-only property in its core

European markets, Formula One has been giving

pay-television broadcasters more exclusivity in



these markets in recent deals, which has produced

some strong rights fee increases.

NCAA propertiesThe uS is unique for the huge commercial value

of its university – or ‘college’ – sports. There are an

array of rights-holders in college sports. The most

valuable property in 2014 is the rights package

sold by the NCAA – the National Collegiate Athletic

Association.

The NCAA’s rights include national colleges

finals in several sports, but most of the value is

in the men’s basketball finals, known as ‘March

Madness’ as they take place in March each year.

Broadcasters CBS and Turner Broadcasting

System hold the rights in a 14-year deal, from 2010-

11 to 2023-24, worth $10.8bn, agreed in 2010.

US PGA TourGolf’s most valuable property is another with

the vast majority of its value in the uS. The Tour

earns about $500m per year from rights deals

with CBS and NBC. The current deal – another

long-term uS deal, from 2013 to 2021 – is thought

to have been renewed at a modest increase on

the previous deal.

Most of the world’s top golfers – including those

from Europe – play on the uS tour, due to the strong

prize money on offer, and the opportunities to play

on some of the world’s best courses.

Outside the uS, the biggest market for the rights

is the uK, where the value increased by 67 per cent

the last time the rights were sold, thanks to strong

competition between Sky and BT Sport.

Australian Football LeagueThe rights value of Australia’s biggest sport is

unsurprisingly almost completely generated in its

home market. The league earned a fee increase

of around 140 per cent in its most recent deal,

with pay-television operator Foxtel, commercial

broadcaster Seven and telco Telstra.

Rights fees for top Australian sports including

the AFL, rugby league’s NRL and Australian cricket

increased strongly in renewals in the last three

years. The AFL has said it is targeting an increase of

about 25 per cent the next time it comes to market,

for 2017 onwards.


THE TOP 10 MARKETS

Many statistics can be plucked to underline the

massive value of the uS sports media rights market,

the world’s biggest. it accounts for 46 per cent of

the global market in 2014. it is over 400 per cent

more valuable than the second-biggest market, the

uK. it is over $3.6bn more valuable than the rest of

the top 10 markets combined. And so on.

These figures make it clear why so many uS

properties, even only regionally-popular ones

like Nascar motor racing, feature among the most

valuable sports properties in the world (see top 20

properties chapter).

And the market continues to grow strongly – up

by about 38 per cent between 2010 and 2014, the

fourth-best growth among the top 10.

The strongest growth market was booming

Brazil, up 97 per cent due to an increasingly

competitive pay-television market that is attracting

foreign investment. Australia, on 59 per cent, and

Canada, 43 per cent, were the next biggest growers.

Australia’s biggest properties agreed new

domestic deals in the last few years, and the market

has a healthy level of competition among free-to-

air and pay-television broadcasters. Canada’s big

increase is largely down to a new agreement for

National Hockey League ice hockey beginning this

year, the market’s most valuable deal ever.

After the uS, Europe dominates, with its big

five markets all making the top 10. Whereas the

uS market value is driven by a mixture of money

coming from free-to-air and pay-television, the

European markets are primarily driven by pay-

television. All except for Germany have two or more

pay-television broadcasters vying for sports rights.

Germany therefore looks like the European market

with the most potential for growth. if pay-television

THE TOP 10 MARKETS

The top 10 markets, ranked by 2014 media-rights value ($m)

Rank Country 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017

1 uS 12,222.0 12,335.5 12,930.5 13,372.4 16,821.8 18,308.8 19,542.5 20,407.1

2 uK 2,451.1 2,457.5 2,523.0 2,906.5 3,311.1 3,499.0 4,032.4 4,405.1

3 italy 1,652.4 1,746.2 1,791.2 1,865.7 1,909.6 2,039.2 2,140.6 2,142.5

4 France 1,742.1 1,759.7 1,767.1 1,782.9 1,864.1 1,931.0 2,040.5 2,111.9

5 Germany 1,117.4 1,141.1 1,142.6 1,243.1 1,373.3 1,456.4 1,497.4 1,559.9

6 Brazil 631.9 633.2 1,086.4 1,216.0 1,243.5 1,234.2 1,245.7 1,154.0

7 Spain 1,164.3 1,167.7 1,185.0 1,209.8 1,211.7 1,241.4 1,317.3 1,316.8

8 Australia 619.2 628.2 802.7 959.5 983.2 1,015.5 1,018.5 1,035.9

9 Canada 488.3 491.6 501.3 493.4 696.6 881.3 887.0 892.9

10 indian subcontinent

630.1 635.9 644.0 645.3 678.2 721.3 823.9 875.3



THE TOP 10 MARKETS

ever takes off in Europe’s biggest economy, sports

rights fees will surely follow.

The developing economies of Brazil and india

have clear potential for further growth. Markets like

italy and France, where pay-television is growing

only slowly, appear to have less potential.

However, the emergence of BT Sport in the uK

has shown that even mature markets are capable

of producing strong growth in rights fees. in that

case, sports rights have been yoked to the uK home

broadband market. Telco BT became a sports

broadcaster in order to challenge broadcaster Sky’s

expansion into broadband.

The top 10 markets together account for 82

per cent of our global total in 2014. This figure has

stayed pretty steady since 2010, at between 80 per

cent and 83 per cent. One would expect the top

10’s share to decrease in the long term, as other

markets around the world develop. Pay-television

– the biggest driver of rights fees in most markets

– still has room for growth in many developing and

developed economies.

Our predictions for the value of the markets in

2015 to 2017 are mostly based on deals already

agreed, and we expect the top 10’s share of the

global total to remain pretty steady.

The markets

1. USThe uS is by far the world’s most valuable sports

media-rights market, due to its powerful economy,

and highly developed television and commercial

sports industries.

it is home to the world’s most valuable sports

rights property, American football’s National

Football League, which derives the majority of its

rights income – which totalled $6.5bn in 2014 –

from its domestic market.

Major League Baseball and the National

Basketball Association are the other two big rights

revenue earners among the country’s professional

sports leagues. Both trail the NFL by a large

distance in terms of the revenue generated from

deals with nationwide broadcasters, from which

the MLB earned about $1.65bn and the NBA $930m

in 2014. The NBA’s income will jump to about

$2.6bn in 2016-17 under deals agreed this year with

broadcasters The Walt Disney Company and Turner

Broadcasting.

individual teams in the baseball and basketball

leagues also have regional rights deals that

generate large revenues – approximately $1.4bn

and $690m respectively in 2014. The NFL doesn’t

have regional deals because of the relatively small

number of matches in the competition – about 332

per year, compared to over 1,400 for the NBA, and

2,430 for the MLB. All NFL rights are acquired by

nationwide broadcasters, but there are plenty of

rights from the other leagues left over for regional

operators.

The uS is unique for the huge value of its

university sport – ‘college sport’ – media rights.

The combined value of the top properties in 2014

was close to $2.4bn. This comes from myriad deals

across different rights-holders, including:

•The American football national finals

competitions, the ‘Bowls’.

•The National Collegiate Athletics Association,

a college sport organiser and umbrella body

which sells the rights to a large number of

competitions. The most valuable in its portfolio

is the men’s national basketball finals, known as

‘March Madness’.

•Regional college conferences – groups of

colleges which compete against each other in

regional competitions, such as the Big 12, the

Pac-10/12, and the SEC.

Three other properties generate over $500m per

year in rights fees – the Olympics (annualised

figure), Nascar motor racing and PGA Tour golf.

NHL ice hockey earns $200m per year from its

nationwide deals, with its teams earning another


THE TOP 10 MARKETS

$349m per year from regional deals in 2014.

A number of well-funded nationwide free-to-air

and pay-television broadcasters compete for top

sports content in the uS. Nationwide pay-television

broadcaster ESPN is the biggest player, spending

over $4bn on rights in 2014, according to Forbes.

unlike many other developed media markets,

commercial free-to-air broadcasters remain major

sports broadcasters, thanks to the lucrative uS

television advertising market. The four main players

are ABC, CBS, Fox and NBC. All of these are in some

way aligned with pay-television, either by owning

their own pay-television channels (e.g. NBC’s

sports pay-television channel NBCSN), or as sister

companies in bigger media groups (e.g. the Disney-

ABC Television Group owns ABC and ESPN, among

other channels).

Media-rights values in the uS have grown in

recent years despite a saturated pay-television

market, and the faltering of the economy after

2008. increasing television advertising spend is

one factor driving this. Another is broadcasters

identifying sports content as one of the few types of

television content that can guarantee big audiences

in a market where on-demand services are growing

quickly.

One trend underlining the value of sport to

broadcasters has been that towards long-term

deals. With a less certain economic outlook than 10

years ago, broadcasters have sought certainty by

securing audience-driving content on a long-term

basis. The NFL has four deals running to 2022-23.

MLB nationwide deals run until 2021. NBC’s NHL

agreement lasts until 2020-21. Rights for Nascar, the

Olympic Games and the PGA Tour are also locked

up in deals until the 2020s. indeed, the recent spate

of long-term deals could also spell the end of what

has been a period of furious growth in rights values.

2. UKThe uK is Europe’s most valuable sports-rights

market, largely due to the success of the leading

local pay-television operator BSkyB, and more

recently due to the entrance of a strong rival pay-

television operator, BT Sport.

English football’s Premier League is the key pay-

television sports property, and at $1.75bn in 2014

its domestic rights accounted for 53 per cent of the

value of the market.

Football dominates the list of most valuable

The top 10 markets, 2014 media-rights value ($m)

20,000.0

18,000.0

16,000.0

14,000.0

12,000.0

10,000.0

8,000.0

6,000.0

4,000.0

2,000.0

0

US UK Italy France Germany Brazil Spain Australia Canada Indian subcontinent


16,821.8

3,311.1

1,909.6 1,864.1 1,373.3 1,243.5 1,211.7 983.2 696.6 678.2


THE TOP 10 MARKETS

properties. The uefa Champions League is the

second biggest. Among other top football rights

are those for English lower-tier leagues, the English

FA Cup, England national team matches, the uefa

European Championship and the Fifa World Cup.

After football, the biggest-earning sports are

rugby union, cricket, Formula One and golf, in no

particular order. The top properties in these sports

have steadily migrated from free-to-air television

to pay-television over the last 20 years as Sky has

grown, and as its rivals have attempted to compete.

Rights-fee growth for pay-television

subscription-driving properties looks set to continue

thanks to the Sky-BT battle. Growth for free-to-

air properties like the Fifa World Cup and uefa

European Championship has slowed or stalled,

because listed-events legislation prevents pay-

television broadcasters acquiring matches in either

competition on an exclusive basis.

Rights fees have grown dramatically since Sky

was launched by Rupert Murdoch in 1990. it was

one of the pioneering pay-television businesses

in its use of exclusive sport to drive subscriptions.

As Sky’s customer base and revenues grew, it

invested increasing amounts in rights, also spurred

by competition from rivals such as Setanta Sports

and ESPN. Both Setanta and ESPN failed to build a

large enough customer base and eventually left the

market.

BT Sport presents Sky’s toughest rival to date,

and this has been reflected by extraordinary rights-

fee growth. The Premier League earned a 63-per-

cent increase in the 2013-14 to 2015-16 cycle – a

huge percentage increase for an established and

already expensive property. uefa has earned an

increase of over 100 per cent for the Champions

League and Europa League in a joint deal.

The intense competition between Sky and BT

is expected to continue at the auction for Premier

League rights for the 2016-17 to 2018-19 cycle,

expected in the first half of 2015. Both can ill afford

to come away with fewer rights than they have at

present, and both have big incentives to increase

their share. The auction will be a defining moment

for the market.

The uK’s main free-to-air sports broadcasters are

the public-service BBC and commercial operator

iTV. They retain several high-value properties,

helped by listed events legislation, including major

international football tournaments, the Olympics

and the Wimbledon tennis championships.

The BBC also acquires sport via its

membership of the European Broadcasting

union, the consortium of European public-

service broadcasters. it is one the big players in

the consortium in terms of funding sports-rights

acquisitions.

3. ItalyThe value of italy’s sports media-rights market is

largely driven by competition between leading

pay-television broadcasters Sky italia and Mediaset

Premium for rights to the domestic football league,

Serie A. Worth over $1.1bn per season, the league’s

rights accounted for 61 per cent of the total value

of the market in 2014.

New deals agreed this year and running from

2015-16 to 2017-18 will take the value of Serie A

close to $1.3bn per season. Sky and Mediaset will

share the rights.

Outside Serie A, football continues to dominate

the list of most valuable rights. The uefa Champions

League, the second most important pay-television

subscription-driver, is the second most valuable

property. Serie A’s decision to make its rights

available to both Sky and Mediaset shifted the focus

of the rights battle to the Champions League.

Strong rights fees are also commanded by

national team football – including the Fifa World

Cup, uefa European Championship, and national

team qualifiers and friendlies – the uefa Europa

League, and the domestic cup.

Outside football, the most valuable properties

are Formula One, the Olympics and MotoGP. Sky


THE TOP 10 MARKETS

has invested heavily in motorsports in the last two

years, agreeing deals for Formula One and MotoGP.

italy has a strong motorsports heritage, being home

to several famous circuits, teams, drivers and riders.

Competition between Sky and Mediaset

Premium has been the main factor pushing up

rights fees for other properties too. However, with

both Serie A and the uefa Champions League

now sold through to 2017-18, there are no sports

properties coming to market imminently which

could really have an impact on the market share of

the two companies.

A strong second platform is vital to continued

competition for premium properties and this will

depend on Mediaset’s appetite to continue to

operate in the pay-television market. The company’s

wider pay-television strategy is unclear and has

changed several times in the last 12 months.

Late last year, Mediaset talked of creating an

italo-Spanish pay-television operation. But in July

it sold its 22-per-cent stake in Spain’s Canal Plus

pay-television platform in order to consolidate

operations in italy, where it sold an 11.11-per-cent

stake in Mediaset Premium to the telco Telefónica

and is looking for other external investors.

The arrival of Fox as a player in the same market

where Sky acquires rights has created an unusual

dynamic. Both are owned by Rupert Murdoch’s

21st Century Fox. For the rights to Serie A in the

forthcoming cycle, the two were theoretically in

competition, with each bidding for similar rights

packages. However, it seems unlikely that the

bidding was not part of a concerted, group strategy,

with the Fox bids operating as an insurance

policy for Sky. However, a strong Fox Sports is not

undiluted good news for Sky, as the channel is also

carried on Mediaset Premium.

in July, 21st Century Fox’s uK pay-television

operator, BSkyB, announced a deal to acquire a

100-per-cent stake in Sky italia and to increase

its stake in Germany’s Sky Deutschland, which

will bring the leading pay-television businesses in

three of Europe’s biggest markets under a single

company. it is unclear what impact this will have

on sports rights markets, but it is likely to be limited

because most sellers of premium content sell

The top 10 markets, share of global media-rights income in 2014


Global total:

$36,837m

uS46%

Rest of world18%

uK9%

France5%

italy5%

Germany4%

indian subcontinent2%

Canada2%

Australia3%

Spain3%

Brazil3%


THE TOP 10 MARKETS

market-by-market.

Public-service broadcaster Rai is the other major

sports broadcaster in italy. But like most European

free-to-air broadcasters, it is unable to compete

in the rights market with pay-television operators.

in Rai’s case this is compounded by financial

difficulties brought on by the weak italian economy.

Commercial broadcaster Mediaset – a sister

company of Mediaset Premium – competes with Rai

for some properties.

Rai and Mediaset have suffered declining shares

of the television audience due to fragmentation

linked to digitalisation and the growth of pay-

television.

Other sports broadcasters active in italy

include pay-television broadcasters Eurosport and

Sportitalia.

4. FranceFrance is the third-biggest sports rights market

in Europe after the uK and italy, and the fourth

biggest in the world. it is a dynamic market with

four main players – public-service broadcaster

France Télévisions, commercial broadcaster TF1,

and pay-television broadcasters beiN Sports and

Canal Plus.

The most popular sports in the country are

football and rugby union. The domestic football

league, Ligue 1, is by far the most valuable property,

at about $880m in 2014. The second most valuable,

the uefa Champions League, is worth $149m.

There is also strong interest and rights value in

two blue-riband events hosted in the country – the

French Open tennis tournament and the Tour de

France cycle race.

Canal Plus, which launched just over 30 years

ago, has been the dominant sports broadcaster for

many years, although it has come under increasing

pressure from Qatari-owned broadcaster beiN

Sports. BeiN arrived in the French market in June

2011, initially acquiring two matches per week

from Ligue 1. it has challenged the dominance of

Canal Plus, competing with it in rights auctions,

and wresting from it top sports rights including

basketball’s NBA, ATP tennis and the Wimbledon

tennis championships.

in response, Canal Plus has focused on

‘premium’ sport – the very top properties – such

as Ligue 1, the uefa Champions League, English

Premier League football and the French Top 14 club

rugby union competition.

The two pay-television broadcasters will

share Ligue 1 rights until the end of 2019-20 and

Champions League rights until 2017-18 following

new deals agreed this year. These are the two

most important pay-television subscription-driving

properties.

Some local experts believe that the intense

competition between the two is easing off after

two years of big rights-fee increases. The one big

property which is soon up for grabs is the Top 14. in

January, Canal Plus renewed its rights from 2014-15

to 2018-19, increasing the rights fee by 124 per cent

in direct talks with the league. BeiN Sports mounted

a successful legal challenge of the deal, based on

the fact that a tender process which it entered was

terminated early. The rights for 2015-16 onwards

must be re-tendered by March 31, 2015.

On free-to-air television, France Télévisions

traditionally shows marquee events such as the

Olympics, rugby union’s Six Nations, the Tour de

France and the French Open. The broadcaster has

retained its major properties despite cuts to its

sports-rights budget since the onset of the global

economic downturn. in the last year it has renewed

deals for European club rugby competitions, French

Open tennis and domestic football cup rights.

France Télévisions also acquires sport via

its membership of the European Broadcasting

union, the consortium of European public-service

broadcasters.

TF1 is France Télévisions’ main competitor for

free-to-air rights. it has exclusive rights for the

2015 Rugby World Cup and showed 28 games


THE TOP 10 MARKETS

from the Fifa World Cup in 2014 (with beiN Sports

showing the rest). it will show 11 games from uefa

Euro 2016, which will be held in France. its biggest

acquisition in the last year has been France national

football team matches from 2014-15 to 2017-18 –

part of the uefa European Qualifiers package sold

by the CAA Eleven agency.

TF1 has in recent years lost rights to marquee

properties including the uefa Champions League

and Formula One due to the increasing money on

offer from pay-television broadcasters.

Below the big four broadcasters, commercial

broadcaster M6, and basic-tier pay-television

broadcasters Eurosport France and Ma Chaîne Sport

buy rights to mainly second- and third-tier sports.

5. GermanyDespite having Europe’s biggest economy,

Germany’s sports-rights market lags behind the

uK, italy and France due to a relatively weak pay-

television industry.

Pay-television has been the main driver of sports

rights value growth in the other markets. German

pay-television operators have struggled to grow.

This has been attributed to a number of factors,

including the deep penetration of low-cost cable

television, free-to-air early-evening football league

highlights on a Saturday night, and the frugality of

the German consumer.

As in other major European rights markets,

football dominates in Germany, and the domestic

league and Champions League are the most

valuable and second most valuable properties

respectively. German Bundesliga 1 domestic rights

fees of $491m account for 36 per cent of the total

value of the market in 2014.

unsurprisingly for the current World Champions,

rights for the World Cup, European Championship

and national team matches are also highly

valuable, as is the domestic club cup.

Outside football, the Olympics and Formula

One are the biggest properties. in current deals,

the international Olympic Committee earns nearly

$50m per year (until 2016), and Formula One about

$95m per year.

Although much less valuable than the top sports,

several Olympic sports generate their biggest rights

fees worldwide in Germany, often via deals with

the European Broadcasting union, the consortium

of public-service broadcasters. As the strongest

members of the consortium financially, ARD and

ZDF are frequently the biggest guarantors of EBu

deals – i.e. the members that contribute the most to

the overall EBu fee.

Handball and winter sports properties –

particularly Alpine and Nordic skiing, ski jumping

and biathlon – can earn fees in the millions of

euros per year, especially when German athletes

are doing well. Germany is thought to account for

around 30 per cent of the global value of Alpine

and Nordic ski World Championships media rights.

There are signs that Germany’s pay-television

industry is slowly waking up, with Sky Deutschland,

owned by Rupert Murdoch’s 21st Century Fox,

enjoying growth in recent years. Sky paid a big

rights fee increase for fully exclusive rights for the

Bundesliga 1 and 2 in the 2013-14 to 2016-17 cycle

– increasing the league’s domestic rights income by

52.5 per cent – which was widely interpreted as the

market turning a corner.

A growing Sky is good news for sports rights

sellers, but fees are still kept in check by a lack of

competition. Sky effectively knocked its last major

competitor, telco Deutsche Telekom, out of the

market by acquiring exclusive Bundesliga rights this

cycle. The two operators had shared the Bundesliga

in the previous cycle. The emergence of a new

serious competitor is unlikely until the Bundesliga

and Champions League rights next come on the

market. These are currently under contract until

2016-17 and 2017-18, respectively.

Public-service broadcasters ARD and ZDF

dominate free-to-air sports broadcasting in

Germany, helped by licence fee revenues of around


THE TOP 10 MARKETS

€8bn per year in total. As well as the traditional

fare of European public-service broadcasters

– the Olympics, Fifa World Cup, uefa European

Championship – they can compete for top

properties such as the uefa Champions League.

Commercial operators RTL and ProSiebenSat.1

have traditionally provided competition for ARD

and ZDF for free-to-air rights. RTL remains strongly

interested in sport, and its rights include German

national football team matches and Formula One.

Sky also has rights to Formula One. However,

Sat.1 has focused increasingly on entertainment

programming in recent years.

Germany has several other sports broadcasters

showing second- and third-tier sports, including

Sport1, a basic-tier and pay-television broadcaster;

basic-tier channels Eurosport and Sportdigital; and

Red Bull-owned regional broadcaster ServusTV.

6. SpainSpain’s domestic football league, La Liga, is the

most valuable property in the market, followed by

the uefa Champions League. La Liga is worth about

$673.5m per year, 56 per cent of the market.

Outside football, the most valuable sports are

motorsport and tennis. Spanish driver Fernando

Alonso transformed Spain into one of Formula

One’s most valuable markets just under a decade

ago. Tennis rights values have similarly been lifted

by the success of Rafael Nadal. Spain is one of the

two strongest markets for MotoGP along with italy.

No European sports-rights market has

undergone a greater transformation in the last

12 months than Spain. The country has been in

economic recession for the last three years, which

has had a profound impact on the television

industry. However, after a major contraction in

2012 and 2013, the sports-rights market showed

signs of a startling recovery in 2014. This was due

to a change in strategy at telco Telefónica and

what appears to be a growing strategic partnership

involving the Catalan rights agency and production

house Mediapro and Qatari broadcaster beiN Media

Group.

Telefónica already owned iPTV pay-television

platform Movistar and is now in the process of

taking control of the Canal Plus pay-television

platform, buying out the stake owned by italian

media group Mediaset and publisher Prisa. in

March, Telefónica launched Movistar Fusion TV,

a converged service which operates across all

platforms.

in February, Telefónica agreed multi-year,

non-exclusive rights deals for Formula One and

MotoGP. in August, it acquired the uefa European

Qualifiers football rights package – covering

European qualifying matches for Euro 2016 and the

2018 Fifa World Cup. The qualifiers deal excludes

Spain’s matches, which are held by public-service

broadcaster TVE.

Mediapro runs the rival Gol T pay-television

service, which is carried on all pay-television

platforms except Canal Plus.

Mediapro’s $218m-per-season deal for the pay-

television rights to the uefa Champions League,

from 2015-16 to 2017-18, is thought to have been

backed by beiN Sports. At the time of writing, the

gameplan of the two companies was not clear –

some analysts expect beiN to acquire Gol T, with

Mediapro continuing to handle the production.

The pay-television market appears to be shaping

up to be a battle between two well-funded giants:

Telefónica on one side, and Mediapro/beiN Media

Group on the other.

The real prize will be the rights to the domestic

football league. Spain remains the only one of

Europe’s ‘big five’ markets where domestic football

clubs sell their rights individually (as opposed to

collectively). This looks set to change from the

2016-17 season, should legislation currently before

parliament be approved.

Mediapro has acquired rights for 39 of the 42

clubs from Spain’s top divisions in 2015-16, and is

expected to secure deals with the remaining three.


THE TOP 10 MARKETS

Competition for the first fully-centralised package

of league rights, from 2016-17, is likely to be fierce.

However, league president Javier Tebas said

in October that the league may instead choose to

launch a channel, which it would make available to

all platforms. The league is also going to push for

a repeal of listed events law which lays down that

one Liga match per week must be shown on free-to-

air television. Repealing the law would mean being

able to offer greater exclusivity to pay-television,

potentially pushing up the value of the rights.

in the free-to-air market, Mediaset-owned

Telecinco remains an active buyer of rights, but only

where it is confident that the acquisitions can be

refinanced from advertising revenues.

Atresmedia, previously known as Antena 3, is

its main commercial rival. Atresmedia and Catalan

public-service broadcaster TV3 will share the

free-to-air rights to the Champions League in the

new cycle. However, Atresmedia is set to suffer a

major loss when Formula One passes exclusively to

Telefónica from 2016.

Budget cuts have reduced TVE’s investment in

rights but the broadcaster is still able to acquire

a substantial amount of sports content, including

major events like the Olympic Games, through

its membership of the European Broadcasting

union, the consortium of European public-service

broadcasters. TVE’s contribution to the EBu deal for

the 2010 and 2012 Games was about $60m.

7. BrazilDomestic football is the most valuable property in

Brazil. The top national league, the Campeonato

Brasileiro Série A, is worth about $586m in 2014,

in individually-agreed deals by its clubs. There are

also several high-value regional competitions, such

as the Campeonato Paulista.

The current Olympics deal is particularly

valuable, at about $52.5m per year, due to Rio de

Janeiro hosting the 2016 summer Games.

Rights fees have been increasing sharply

in recent years, particularly for top football,

due to the country’s growing economy, and an

increasingly competitive sports broadcasting

sector. There are four major competing sports

broadcasters – free-to-air Globo and its pay-

television arm Globosat, purely free-to-air Esporte

interativo, and purely pay-television ESPN and Fox

Sports. They sometimes form partnerships in rights

auctions, which stop rights fees going through

the roof, although in general competition in the

The top 10 markets, predicted media-rights value growth 2010-17

100

90

80

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

0

Canada Brazil UK Australia US Germany Indian subcontinent

Italy France Spain


83% 83% 80%

67% 67%

39%40%

30%

21%13%


THE TOP 10 MARKETS

market is strong.

Globo, the biggest media group in Brazil, is

dominant, owning all the top domestic football

properties. it has long-term deals with the domestic

clubs – which sell their rights individually unlike

most European football leagues – and regional

championships.

The other players compete strongly for

international football in particular, such as the uefa

Champions League and European domestic leagues.

ESPN and Fox were last year joined in the

market by another North American player, Turner

Broadcasting, which acquired a 20 per cent stake

in Brazilian broadcaster Esporte interativo. Turner

properly flexed its muscles for the first time in

November 2014, helping Esporte interativo snatch

uefa Champions League rights from ESPN. Esporte

interativo plans to launch a pay-television channel

to complement its free-to-air service.

Brazil is by far the most valuable market in Latin

America. Sports rights are often sold in the rest of

the region in single, pan-regional deals.

8. AustraliaAustralia has several highly-popular sports,

unlike many markets around the world which are

dominated by one or two. Australian rules football,

cricket and rugby league are the most valuable in

media rights terms, with football, the Olympics and

rugby union making up a second tier.

Domestic cricket and rugby league enjoyed

large rights-fee increases in deals agreed in the

last couple of years. The Australian rules AFL is

hopeful of following suit in deals for 2017 onwards,

talks for which are in the early stages. However,

broadcasters are playing down the possibility of a

big increase for what is already the country’s most

valuable property.

The AFL earns about $274m per year in deals

with pay-television operator Fox, commercial

broadcaster Seven and telco Telstra, running from

2012 to 2016.

Cricket Australia, the national governing body,

is earning over $115m per year in deals with

commercial broadcasters Nine and Ten for rights

to national team and domestic Twenty20 cricket,

covering 2013-14 to 2017-18. This is an increase of

over 100 per cent compared to the last cycle.

The NRL, the domestic rugby league

competition, is earning about $216m per year in

deals with Nine and Fox covering 2013 to 2017. This

was also an increase of well over 100 per cent on

the previous deals.

Pay-television broadcaster Fox Sports is the

leading sports broadcaster, and has no major

pay-television rival, which has kept rights fee

growth in check. However, commercial free-to-air

broadcasters Seven, Nine and Ten provide it with

competition in the rights market, and have been

aggressively acquiring sport in recent years to stock

digital channels as digital terrestrial television

penetration has increased.

Free-to-air broadcasters are aided by extensive

listed events legislation – ‘anti-siphoning’

legislation in the local parlance. This has been

relaxed in recent years, but continues to cover many

valuable events, including certain national team

rugby league, rugby union and cricket matches, and

the AFL Grand Final.

Public-service broadcasters ABC and SBS play

a relatively small role in sports broadcasting,

although SBS has several strong second-tier

properties including the Fifa World Cup, uefa

Champions League and major cycle races such as

the Tour de France.

Competition in the pay-television market could

heat up depending on how ambitious the Qatari-

owned beiN Media Group is in the market, following

its acquisition this year of small pay-television

broadcaster Setanta Sports Australia. BeiN has built

up strong sports pay-television operations in the

Middle East and France, and also has channels in

the uS and Southeast Asia.

Financial struggles at commercial operator Ten


THE TOP 10 MARKETS

have led to rumours that it could be taken over,

with Fox and international media group Discovery

linked to it. This could in theory give Ten more

muscle in the sports-rights market.

9. CanadaNHL ice hockey is by far the most valuable property

in Canada. At over $417m per year, its current

central deal will account for about 47 per cent

of the total value of the market when it is fully

underway in 2015. Regional deals by the seven

Canadian NHL franchises are worth a further $163m

in 2014, rising to $189m in 2015.

The centrally-sold NHL rights are held by telco

Rogers Communications in a 12-year deal, from

2014-15 to 2025-26. The franchise deals are held by

regional subsidiaries of either Rogers or rival media

group Bell Media.

Outside ice hockey, the most valuable properties

include the Canadian Football League (Canadian

football is similar to American football) at around

$30m per year, the Olympics at just over $20m per

year, and Major League Baseball team the Toronto

Blue Jays, whose regional deal is reported by local

media worth $36m in 2014.

Two pay-television networks dominate sports

broadcasting in Canada – TSN, owned by Bell

Media, and Rogers Sportsnet, owned by Rogers

Communications. Rogers’ NHL deal tilted the

balance of power in its favour – TSN was the former

rights-holder.

A quirk of the Canadian market is that most

rights-holders do separate deals there for

French-language and English-language rights.

Audiences for most sports are split 75:25 between

English speakers and French speakers. The two

main French-language sports broadcasters

have partnerships with Rogers and TSN – RDS is

owned by Bell so teams with TSN, and TVA has an

agreement with Rogers.

Public-service broadcaster CBC was formerly a

major sports broadcaster, but announced in April

2014 that it would no longer bid for rights to sports

events that do not have national significance, due

to budget cuts.

CBC was able to renew its rights for the Olympic

Games in November 2014, to cover the 2018 and

2020 Olympics, for an increase thought to be

less than 5 per cent. The seller, the international

Olympic Committee, was effectively confronted

with a buying cartel after CBC pre-agreed

sublicensing deals with both Rogers and Bell,

leaving no competition in the market. CBC also has

rights to the 2014 and 2016 Olympics. The public-

service broadcaster suffered a heavy blow in the

previous cycle when Rogers and Bell together

bought the 2010 Vancouver winter Games, along

with London 2012.

10. Indian subcontinentSports media rights are usually sold on a pan-indian

subcontinent basis, taking in Pakistan, Bangladesh

and several smaller countries as well as india. india-

based pay-television broadcasters such as Star and

Ten Sports tend to acquire the most valuable rights,

and either show them on their own channels in

the different countries or sublicense them to local

broadcasters.

Cricket utterly dominates the market,

accounting for over 75 per cent of indian

subcontinent rights fees in 2014.

in india, three properties are of particular

importance: the indian Premier League Twenty20

competition, domestic matches of the indian

national team, and the rights of the international

Cricket Council, which include the one-day and

Twenty20 World Cups. Football’s English Premier

League is the most valuable non-cricket property.

Efforts have been made to emulate the success of

the iPL in other sports, using the model of city-based

franchise teams and celebrity investors. None has

so far taken off, but perhaps the strongest effort yet

is being made with indian Super League football.

This was launched by iMG-Reliance, a joint venture


THE TOP 10 MARKETS

between global sports marketing group iMG and

indian conglomerate Reliance, in partnership with the

All india Football Federation and broadcaster Star.

Rights fees have generally been growing in

india, although not as spectacularly as in some

other developing markets. Pay-television, the main

driver of rights fee increases in many markets, is

held back by weak infrastructure. Broadcasters rely

on subscriber fees from regional cable-television

platforms, and under-reporting of subscriber

numbers and piracy are rampant.

Rights fees are also affected by listed-events

legislation which dictates that rights for sports

events of national importance must be shared with

Doordarshan, the public-service broadcaster.

The major players in the sports rights market

are all pay-television broadcasters – Sony Six, Star

india, Neo and Ten Sports. Star is owned by Rupert

Murdoch’s 21st Century Fox.


THE TOP 10 DEALS OF 2013-14

The table below shows the 10 most valuable sports

media-rights deals in the world in the period from

November 15, 2013 to November 14, 2014.

1. NBA – USThe size of the uS rights market and popularity of

its ‘big four’ sports tends to ensure the NBA, MLB,

NFL and NHL feature in any accounting of most

valuable sports-rights deals. So it’s no surprise to

find three of those properties among the 10 most

valuable of 2013-14.

Clear at the top of the list is the NBA’s renewal

with long-term broadcast partners The Walt Disney

Company and Turner Broadcasting System. The

combined $2.67bn (€2.1bn)-per-season deal for

2016-17 to 2024-25 is a 186-per-cent increase

on the existing eight-year, $930m-per-season

agreement.

There will be more games for Turner’s TNT

channel and Disney’s ESPN and ABC channels, and

both have expanded their digital rights. Disney’s

$1.46bn-per-season share includes the Women’s

NBA and some international rights for the first

time.

This type of deal has been a common story in the

uS market in recent years. unhindered by antitrust

legislation such as that in Europe which prevents

such long-term deals, uS broadcasters have moved

to lock down their biggest rights properties for as

long as possible.

Disney and Turner did so during an exclusive

negotiating window in their NBA deals, preventing


The top 10 sports media-rights deals, Nov 2013 to Nov 2014

Rank Property Sport Territories Value Period covered Duration Buyer

1 NBA Basketball uS1 $24bn 2016-17 to 2024-25 9 years ESPN/Turner Broadcasting

2 NFL Sunday Ticket American Football

uS $12bn 2015 to 2022 8 years DirecTV

3 Olympic Games Multi-sport uS $7.65bn 2022 to 2032 6 Games NBC

4 NHL ice Hockey Canada $4.8bn 2014-15 to 2025-26 12 years Rogers

5 italian Serie A Football italy $3.85bn 2015-16 to 2017-18 3 years Mediaset Premium/Sky italia

6 French Ligue 1 Football France $3.7bn 2016-17 to 2019-20 4 years Canal Plus/beiN Media

7 MLB: Philadelphia Phillies

Baseball uS $2.5bn 2016 to 2040 25 years Comcast SportsNet

8 international Cricket Council events

Cricket Global $2.1bn 2015-16 to 2022-23 8 years Star india/Star Middle East

9 Olympic Games Multi-sport Japan $1.04bn 2018 to 2024 4 games Japan Consortium

10 Spanish Liga Football Global $950m 2015-16 1 year Mediapro

Source: TV Sports Markets, other media ¹ESPN has some international rights



the property coming to market, where it would have

been subject to fierce competition.

2. NFL – USThe NFL remains America’s most valuable sports

property. When the league renewed a deal for its

Sunday Ticket package of ‘out-of-market’ games,

it is not thought there was any competition to

incumbent satellite operator DirecTV. The league

nonetheless earned a 50-per-cent increase on its

current deal, up to $1.5bn per season over eight

years, from 2015-16 to 2022-23.

DirecTV has carried the Sunday Ticket for close

to 20 years. in the new deal it will have for the first

time the rights to stream games live on mobile

devices, via broadband and over-the-top for non-

subscribers.

The agreement was notable for its role in an

even bigger deal: the $48.5bn merger between

DirecTV and telco AT&T. Filings with the uS

Securities and Exchange Commission revealed that

AT&T could have walked away from the acquisition

if DirecTV had failed to keep hold of the Sunday

Ticket.

3. Olympic Games – USThe trend of uS broadcasters agreeing long-term

deals is epitomised in NBCuniversal’s $7.65bn deal

for six editions of the Olympic Games between 2022

and 2032. The contract doesn’t begin for seven

years, and runs for 18 years.

No major sports-rights deal has ever

represented such a leap in the dark for both rights-

holder and broadcaster. Nobody can accurately

predict the market value of rights so far ahead, nor

the level of uS inflation, nor the value of the dollar.

Nonetheless, few believe NBC has overpaid.

On an average-per-Games basis the broadcaster is

paying 16 per cent more than in its four-Games deal

covering 2014 to 2020, which was worth $4.38bn.

indeed for the iOC there is a risk it has undersold its

rights.

4. NHL - Canadaice hockey’s NHL signed with telco Rogers in

November 2013 in Canada’s biggest-ever sports-

rights deal, worth $4.8bn over 12 seasons, from

2014-15 to 2025-26.

ice hockey is the country’s favourite sport, and

the NHL is the sport’s top property and features

seven Canadian teams. The agreement gives Rogers

exclusive national rights on all of its platforms in all

languages. The Canadian market has both English

and French-speaking regions.

The deal was a hammer blow for former NHL

rights-holder Bell, Rogers’ big rival in the market.

From 2008-09 to 2013-14, Bell and public-service

broadcaster Canadian Broadcasting Corporation

held the rights in deals worth a combined $156m

per season, with CBC paying about $89m.

5. Italian Serie A – ItalyThe clubs of italy’s Serie A secured an increase of

14 per cent in the value of their domestic television

rights, following a tortuous tender process this year.

Tactical bidding by broadcasters in the first

round forced the Lega Serie A, the governing body

of the division, and its rights sales adviser the

infront Sports & Media agency to abandon the

tender and enter direct talks with broadcasters.

Eventually, one package of rights was awarded to

pay-television broadcaster Sky italia and two to

RTi, parent company of pay-television broadcaster

Mediaset Premium.

After both broadcasters agreed sublicensing

deals with each other, Sky was left with rights to

all 380 matches per season, of which 132 will be

exclusive, for a total outlay of about $780m per

season. Mediaset will have the rights to home and

away matches of eight teams, including the top

four, for about $510m per season.

The league’s income increased from $1,131m

per season in the current three-year deal, 2012-13

to 2014-15, to $1,284m per season in the seasons

from 2015-16 to 2017-18.



At the time of writing, a package of ancillary

rights remains unsold, as does one of online, mobile

and iPTV rights to three matches per week.

6. French Ligue 1 - FranceEmergent international sports broadcaster beiN

Media Group has used top football to drive the

rollout of its beiN Sports channels over the last few

years, and the French football league was in the last

year one of the beneficiaries.

The 20-per-cent increase in value gained by

the league – covering its domestic rights – was

not as strong as many had expected. it suggested

that beiN is more cost-conscious than previously

thought. Because the broadcaster is ultimately

owned by the Qatari state, there was some belief

within the industry that it had access to unlimited

financial firepower in rights auctions.

The league will earn $1,030m per season over

the four seasons from 2016-17 to 2019-20, up from

$907m per season in the current four-year cycle,

2012-13 to 2015-16. As in the current cycle, the

rights will be split between beiN and Canal Plus, the

long-time market-leading pay-television operator in

France.

Canal Plus and beiN both acquired a number of

packages. BeiN lost one of the two live match slots

per week it holds in the current cycle, although it

expanded its digital rights.

7. Philadelphia Phillies – US regionalWith nationwide rights deals for the major uS

properties wrapped up until 2020 or beyond, much

of the activity in the uS market in the next few years

will involve regional broadcast deals signed by MLB,

NBA and NHL teams. Regional deals are agreed by

individual teams, as opposed to centrally by the

leagues.

MLB team the Philadelphia Phillies earns

$35m per year in its current regional deal with the

Comcast SportsNet pay-television network. in a

renewal beginning in 2016 and running for 25 years,

the team will earn an average of $100m per year.

The annual fee will gradually increase during the

contract.

This is one of many large increases in regional

uS rights deals in recent years, as regional pay-

television channels have paid premiums to secure

strong sports content for long terms.

8. International Cricket Council – globalThere was intense competition for the iCC’s rights,

with 12 broadcasters making 16 separate bids. in

the end, the bid from incumbent rights-holder Star

india outweighed any combination of its rivals’ bids.

The value breaks down into $1.9bn for the

media rights and about $180m in committed

marketing expenditure.

in its current eight-year cycle, from 2007-08

to 2014-15, the iCC earns $1.1bn. The deal was

originally agreed with ESPN Star Sports (ESS), a

joint venture between Rupert Murdoch’s Star and

Disney’s ESPN. Star bought out ESPN’s stake in 2012.

The vast majority of the value of the deal lies

in india, where iCC rights are one of the three

must-have properties along with the domestic

cricket board and Twenty20 cricket league the

indian Premier League. Star is in competition in

india with three other major sports pay-television

broadcasters – Sony Six, Ten Sports and Nimbus

Communications.

9. Olympic Games – JapanThe Japanese market has become one of the most

difficult in the world from a seller’s perspective. The

pay-television operators are uncompetitive, while

free-to-air broadcasters often act in concert.

The latter was the case in the latest Olympics

deal, which was agreed by the Japan Consortium,

consisting of public-service broadcaster NHK and

the Japan Commercial Broadcasters Association:

Fuji TV, NTV, TBS, TV Asahi and Tokyo TV. The



consortium is thought to have had virtually no

competition.

Thus the international Olympics Committee’s

$1.04bn deal is considered a good one. Fees have

increased 47 per cent on a per-Games basis.

However, an increase was expected due to

Tokyo hosting the 2020 summer Olympics, and

neighbouring South Korea hosting the 2018 winter

Olympics. About 60 per cent of the consortium’s

fee relates to the 2018 and 2020 Games, with the

remaining 40 per cent to the 2022 and 2024 events,

hosts for which have yet to be appointed.

10. Spanish Liga – SpainSpanish agency Mediapro will pay about $950m for

the rights of the Spanish Liga 20 top division clubs in

2015-16. The clubs receive about $960m this season,

from deals with Mediapro and media group Prisa.

The Spanish league’s clubs sell their rights

individually, unlike the other top European leagues

which use collective sales models. Mediapro faced

no competition in agreeing deals with the clubs

this year, unlike in recent seasons when it was

challenged by Prisa. Mediapro acquires the rights

for two reasons: for its Spanish pay-television

channel Gol T, and to sell internationally. Prisa

formerly acquired rights for pay-television platform

Canal Plus, which it is in the process of selling

to telco Telefónica. Prisa previously sold on its

international rights to Mediapro.

One surprising aspect of the 2015-16 deals

was that Mediapro did not face competition from

Telefónica. The telco re-entered the sports-rights

market this year with deals for Formula One motor

racing and motorcycling’s MotoGP. Telefónica

wants to strengthen its existing pay-television

platform Movistar.

Local experts say Telefónica wants to share

the Liga rights with Mediapro via a sublicensing

agreement. Both parties would have been aware

Prisa/Canal Plus’s aggressive move on club rights in

the last cycle forced up the value by 23 per cent.

At the time of writing, Mediapro was still

in negotiations with three clubs for 2015-16:

Barcelona, Real Sociedad and Espanyol. The $950m

figure is the agency’s expected final outlay.

SportBusiness GroupSt Mark's House

Shepherdess Walk London N1 7BQ

Tel. +44 (0)207 954 3515 Fax. +44 (0)207 954 3511www.sportbusiness.com

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