The president of the Professional Football League (LFP), a candidate for re-election, spoke about the summer soap opera of television rights in a long interview given to L’Equipe on Wednesday.
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The president counterattacks. After a turbulent summer marked by the Ligue 1 TV rights saga, and a few days before the election of the future head of the Professional Football League (LFP), outgoing president Vincent Labrune defended his record and his position in a long interview given to the daily newspaper The Team, Wednesday August 28He spoke out about the many criticisms of the management of television rights, saying that “no one could have done better”.
Vincent Labrune denounces in particular “attacks of rare violence orchestrated by a group of individuals with the dual objective of sabotaging the call for tenders on audiovisual rights and of blowing up governance”. “It is unbearable to read and hear such untruths, to have such a rewriting of history which is dishonesty, lies and pure and simple conspiracy”he also says.
For him, the crisis that French club football is going through has its roots in Mediapro, “the biggest strategic mistake in our history”which had originally acquired the broadcasting rights for Ligue 1 and Ligue 2 for the period 2020-2024, before payment delays and the channel being shut down during the season. “Nor can anyone recover from a broadcaster who is unable to honour his commitments and who places himself under the protection of the commercial court fifteen days after the election.”he rewinds. He also explains that he has taken solid guarantees from the new broadcaster, DAZN, to avoid a new crisis of this kind.
Still on the subject of television rights, estimated at 500 million euros, “confirmed” that the result “is disappointing and far from our objective, which was not that of our communication”. Asked about the high and disputed prices of the DAZN subscription, which ultimately won the day, he says he is not “not the boss of DAZN” and that he “does not set their prices”recalling that “Football is a premium product that has a cost” and that the offer “is cheaper than that practiced by our neighbors, except Italy”.
While ensuring that he has “well aware of this difficulty”He also regrets the withdrawal of Canal +, which “did not participate in the tender and did nothing to make it go smoothly”. “The Mediapro episode triggered a very strong resentment from Canal + against the LFP and the clubs, the consequences of which we are still paying today”he believes.
Asked about the debates surrounding the scheduling of Ligue 2 matches on Fridays, a slot that was removed last season, and while a meeting was called on the subject on Wednesday, he assures that “contrary to popular belief, a certain number of L2 clubs appreciate the Friday evening slot, which is favorable for their sponsors”. “BeIN Sports wanted to change the L2 schedule at the last minute. This was done on the day the contract was validated. I understand the anger of a certain number of L2 fans who had organized themselves differently”he also acknowledges.