Canal Plus, beIN Sports secure deal to show LFP rights in public places

The Ligue de Football Professionnel, the French football league, has agreed deals with Canal Plus and beIN Sports that will allow the pay-television broadcasters to exploit their rights in public places.

BeIN Sports and Canal Plus will be able to show matches from the top two divisions in France, Ligue 1 and Ligue 2, in bars, hotels, hospitals and public places. The deals will run for four seasons, from 2016-17 to 2019-20.

Didier Quillot, the league’s executive general manager, said all domestic rights for the next cycle had now been awarded.

In 2014, Canal Plus acquired packages one and two in the tender for the four-season period. Package one includes 28 first-choice matches, 10 second-choice games and 38 third-choice matches per season plus a Saturday and Sunday evening highlights programme. Package two includes 28 matches and a Sunday evening magazine programme.

BeIN Sports has acquired packages three, four, five and six. Package three includes 22 matches, including 12 on a shared basis, plus three magazine programmes on Friday, Saturday and Sunday evenings.

Package four features three multi-game match days (in the 19th, 37th and 38th matchdays) plus the Trophée des Champions match between the league and cup winners. Package five includes magazine programmes from Monday to Friday while package six comprises on-demand coverage of near-live matches and magazine programmes.