The next French television deal is already moving under the lights. The LFP has brought forward its plans to sell Ligue 1 broadcasting rights and will open a tender for the 2027-32 cycle between 3 November and 7 December.
The Ligue 1 news
The process had originally been scheduled for 2029, but the Professional Football League has decided to begin two years earlier as it seeks a more secure financial future for France’s top flight.
The decision comes against a difficult backdrop for clubs, with the LFP’s own Ligue 1+ platform, launched in the summer of 2025, not yet generating major income for the elite sides.
LFP president Vincent Labrune said the market had changed in recent months. He said he and LFP Media chief executive Olivier Bramly had held meetings with several parties who had shown concrete interest in acquiring the rights.
A change in the legislative framework has also created the possibility of selling the competition as a single package. That could allow one broadcaster to obtain exclusive access to the whole of Ligue 1, rather than dividing the schedule across multiple rights packages.
Labrune believes the new structure could improve the league’s negotiating position. “For the first time in a long while, French football is able to choose its own future,” he said.
He argued that Ligue 1+ had helped the league regain freedom in its commercial approach, while insisting that the earlier timetable should prove more attractive to leading market players.
The LFP has also formed a steering committee to oversee the sale process and prepare the steps that follow. The eventual buyer could come from the established television and media sector, or from a newer player looking to enter the French football market.
The next appointment in France
The tender window will run from 3 November until 7 December, covering audiovisual rights for five Ligue 1 seasons from 2027-28 through to 2031-32.
