Premier League’s Fierce TV Rights Battle: DAZN vs Amazon Prime
In the imminent tussle for the broadcasting supremacy of England’s football crown jewel, the Premier League, streaming giants DAZN are bracing for a head-to-head with Amazon Prime. With the rights auction just around the corner, an enhanced package of live games is up for grabs, promising to intensify the contest.
Expanded Offering on the Horizon
The Daily Mail reports that an augmented fifth package is on the Premier League’s offering table, intriguingly featuring entire midweek rounds and select Sunday fixtures, particularly spotlighting clubs grappling in the Europa League.
“Amazon are currently paying around £90million for 60 live matches in three seasons staged over the Christmas period,” as per a revelation during the summer by Mail Sport. This lucrative arrangement is set to evolve with the 2025-26 season, marking a pioneering move to broadcast all Sunday games, thereby piquing broadcasters’ interests exponentially.
DAZN to battle Amazon for expanded fifth package of Premier League matches, including midweek rounds and Sunday games featuring Europa clubs.
https://t.co/RFoksS3ihP— Matt Hughes (@MattHughesDM) October 13, 2023
Amazon’s Historical Head Start
Insiders have divulged to Mail Sport the Premier League’s strategic move six years ago, handing Amazon their debut live rights at a markedly reduced rate. This masterstroke was designed to lure them into the fiercely competitive broadcasting arena.
Furthermore, the pandemic saw the 2019-22 domestic TV deal extended by three years under identical terms, a gesture of the Premier League’s benevolence, ensuring Amazon’s continued access to a wealth of games at a bargain.
Stakes Have Been Raised
With the upcoming rights auction, expectations are high for a substantial escalation from the existing £5billion three-year domestic deal, as the repertoire of matches is set to soar from 200 to roughly 270.
The forecast suggests even the least expensive among the quintet of packages could command an annual price of around £300m. This hefty tag raises questions over Amazon’s willingness to allocate such significant resources to a venture beyond their principal domain.
DAZN’s Strategic Ambitions
Industry chatter suggests DAZN perceives the bolstered Amazon package as a more feasible target compared to the coveted prime-time weekend slots, likely to remain under the purview of stalwarts like Sky Sports and TNT Sport.
DAZN, the brainchild of Ukrainian-born British tycoon Len Blavatnik, has witnessed meteoric growth since its 2016 inception. With the Premier League rights in Spain under their belt, along with an impressive array of sports including the women’s Champions League, boxing, baseball, and basketball, DAZN is poised to aggressively pursue the Premier League’s UK rights.
As the landscape of sports broadcasting undergoes seismic shifts, the impending auction is more than a mere sale—it’s a declaration of the evolving dynamics in how we consume the beautiful game.
