The French Football League (LFP) announced on Thursday that the Qatar-based satellite broadcaster had acquired rights for an additional six live Ligue 1 games per round on pay-per-view, as well as a weekly football magazine programme. The deal is reportedly worth a minimum Eur240 million for the four seasons commencing from 2012-13.
Al-Jazeera had already secured the rights to two games per round, with Canal Plus previously showing the remainder of the package. The new agreement sees the French pay-television channel retain the rights to two matches per week.
Thursday’s announcement continues Al-Jazeera’s major investment in French media rights. In December it snapped up four of the country’s five media rights packages for the UEFA Champions League from 2012-15, while it has also acquired the international rights to Ligue 1 action. Al-Jazeera is understood to be planning to launch or acquire its own channel in France, to provide a platform for its rights, and has spoken to Orange about such a project. Nasser al-Khelaifi, president of Al Jazeera Sport, also serves as chairman of Ligue 1 giant Paris Saint-Germain.
