French pay-television broadcaster Canal Plus has complained to the Autorité de la Concurrence, the country’s competition authority, about the early launch of a rights tender by the Ligue de Football Professionnel (LFP), the French football league.
Earlier this month, the league launched a domestic rights sales process for the next cycle of rights to Ligue 1 and Ligue 2, the top two divisions in the country, covering four seasons, from 2016-17 to 2019-20. Bidding for a total of six packages will take place between April 2 and April 4.
According to French newspaper Le Figaro, Canal Plus did not expect the next cycle of rights to be put on the market for two years.
The league is hoping to take advantage of the current competition in the pay-television sector between Canal Plus and beIN Sports, with both broadcasters currently sharing domestic rights for Ligue 1.
“The timing is unacceptable,” Canal Plus president Bertrand Meheut said. “The league sold us the rights for four years until June 2016. We wish to benefit [from these rights] calmly. I do not understand the rush.”
Meheut also criticised league president Frédéric Thiriez’s explanation that the early sale of rights will allow clubs to make plans in line with guaranteed future revenue streams.
“The league says it needs [future] visibility for its clubs, but broadcasters and subscribers need that too,” he added. “For 30 years, we have been there to finance French football. Our support is not in doubt. The only question now is respect for partners.”