Six broadcasters have made offers to the Ligue Nationale de Rugby, which operates the French professional rugby union league, for the rights to the top-tier Top 14 and second-tier Pro D2 divisions, according to L’Equipe.
The French newspaper said pay-television broadcasters Canal Plus and beIN Sports, public-service broadcaster France Télévisions, pan-European sports broadcaster Eurosport, digital-terrestrial television channel L’Equipe 21 and basic-tier sports broadcaster Ma Chaîne Sport made offers as the tender process closed on Monday.
The LNR launched the sales process for rights to the Top 14 and Pro D2 last month. The rights for the Top 14 cover four seasons, from 2015-16 to 2018-19, and include the final of the 2014-15 season. The rights for the Pro D2 cover five seasons, from 2015-16 to 2019-20.
Canal Plus is the current Top 14 rights-holder, but its five-year deal, from 2014-15 to 2018-19, was cut short by the Autorité de la Concurrence, the French competition authority, which ordered a new tender process to run from the start of next season.