Ligue 1 TV rights: "Make our own channel or go back to Canal+" (J. Oughourlian, RC Lens)

"I can only see two solutions: the first would be to make our own channel. A lot of people don't understand that at the League and certain conflicts of interest mean that this option will be very complicated to put in place. The second is to go back to serious people like Canal+. When they take a product, they know how to show it off to their viewers. If you want people to pay, you have to go to a good broadcaster. It's not difficult to understand," said Joseph Oughourlian, president of RC Lens (Ligue 1 McDonald's), to the French daily Le Parisien on 15/02/2025.

The owner of the French club has commented on the dispute between the Ligue de Football Professionnel and its broadcaster DAZN over payment for the domestic TV rights to the Ligue 1 McDonald's. The OTT platform, which holds the domestic TV rights to eight (out of nine) live Ligue 1 games per matchday over the 2024-2029 cycle for an average of €400m per year, has only paid 50% of its instalment set in February (i.e. €35m gross out of €70m) for these rights. DAZN has placed the remaining €35m "in escrow" pending an agreement…