It is not necessary to consult reports to understand that, for many, life has become more expensive faster than salaries. Many of us check this when making a purchase, looking for a home or renewing insurance. Even so, there are few consumer decisions that endure as much as football. Not only do we continue to see it, but it is more present than ever in the television packages, in the bars, on the platforms and in the subscriptions we take out.
This prominence is not only reflected in the way we consume it, but also in how it is valued as a product. LaLiga, the organization that manages professional competitions in Spain, has awarded the domestic audiovisual rights for the new cyclewhich will cover from 2027/28 to 2031/32. The result marks a historical maximum: 6,135 million euros, 9% more than the previous cycle. Telefónica and DAZN will repeat as partners, ensuring the broadcast and exploitation of the content for five more seasons.
Where do the 6,135 million come from? The record figure is not explained only by households, but by the diversification of the product. The residential block represents 5,250 million euros, but the segment HORECAwhich includes bars, public premises and hospitality establishments, is close to 650 million. LaLiga Hypermotionwhich is the Second Division and takes its name from the Hypermotion technology used in soccer video games, contributes about 175 million. Added to this are more than 60 million in open rights and summaries. Football is no longer sold in a single format.
Football as an anchor for subscriptions. For streaming operators and platforms, football has become the product capable of sustaining their business models. It’s no longer just about gaining users, as PwC warns and Simon-Kucher Consultingbecause the market is beginning to show clear signs of saturation, but of obtaining more income from each subscriber. And there football is decisive. Telefónica, with Movistar Plus+, and DAZN have opted to maintain the rights because it allows them to maintain customers, justify prices and build packages that cannot be understood without this content.
That football continues to be part of our social life is reflected in the figure for the HORECA segment: close to 650 million euros, compared to 500 million in the previous cycle. The bars and restaurants that hire the service not only offer the content, they offer a place to experience it in company. LaLiga knows that the value is not only in the broadcast, but in the environment that accompanies it.
Second division, HYPERMOTION brand and added value. With Hypermotion, LaLiga has turned its Second Division into an audiovisual product with its own entity. Not only does the name change: the way of presenting and exploiting it changes. This block, as we say, will contribute around 175 million euros, 40% more than in the previous cycle.
The crusade against illegal emissions. Part of the increase in value is explained byLaLiga’s crusade against illegal broadcasts. The organization has intensified control over platforms that distributed content without authorization, with legal actions that have generated debate, like the case of Cloudflare. Javier Tebas defends that this strategy It has allowed “increasing the number of operators’ users” and reinforcing confidence in the product. It has not been without controversy, but LaLiga maintains that it has had a real impact on the market.
The agreement not only brings income, but also time. LaLiga points out that a five-year cycle offers clubs and operators sufficient margin to plan, renew contracts, invest in technology and reinforce the audiovisual structure. By bringing forward the trend and detaching it from the new UEFA framework, the competition avoided the negative effects that other European leagues have faced. The message we want to convey is stability, legal security and continuity of the model.
What does all this mean? This model has a direct link with consumer habits. Increasingly, platforms are designing their packages thinking about who is willing to pay more for certain content, and football fits into that category. It doesn’t just attract users, it retains them and gives them reasons to stay. This behavior explains why football maintains its central position in the catalog and why companies consider it a strategic piece.
Images | LaLiga
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