Serie A Unanimously Approves Groundbreaking Broadcasting Rights Auction
Carlo De Marchis
Advisor. 35+ years in sports & media tech. "A guy with a scarf" Public speaker. C-suite, strategy, product, innovation, OTT, digital, B2B/D2C marketing, AI/ML.
Another chapter in the saga of Italian domestic media rights for Lega Serie A .
Quiet an innovative approach, finally, for Italy.
What happened
In a unanimous agreement that marks a historic day for Italian football, the Serie A League has approved the tender for the auction of its TV broadcasting rights for the forthcoming seasons. The landmark decision took place during a recently held assembly at the League's headquarters on Via Rosellini, Milan.
"The emergency assembly was convened to address two vital issues: the TV rights tender and changes to the statute regarding the centralization of current archives. Today is a significant day, as the clubs unanimously approved the tender and the statute amendment. For the first time, the Melandri Law has acknowledged the importance of centralizing the current archive," commented Lorenzo Casini, the President of the Serie A League.
"This unanimous decision is a key factor that will allow us to publish the tender with this current archive package included. The principle inserted is crucial, as the current archive in the next five-year period will be included in the centralized sale of rights. A distribution criterion is already foreseen, and at the end of the five-year period, distribution will be based on the Melandri Law," Casini added.
Looking forward, the League is eager to move quickly, with hopes of publishing the tender by the end of May or early June at the latest.
The assembly has approved eight different packages, each with different configurations, with a minimum price of €1.2 billion per year for a three-year offer, increasing by 10% for a four-year sale and a further 10% for a five-year sale.
"Today is a very important day, the clubs unanimously approved the amendment of the statute and the Call to Offer for the sale of audiovisual rights for the next cycle," explained Casini. "For the first time since the Melandri Law, the clubs have recognized the importance of centralizing the commercialization of the current archive, aligning the Serie A League with other European leagues. This unanimous decision represents the awareness of the need to change and strengthen the role of the Serie A League as the competition organizer."
Luigi De Siervo, CEO of the Serie A League, shared further details, "We started drafting this tender after serious market listening and we understood the importance of starting well in advance. We will offer a high-quality product, for which we have heavily invested in technology and image enhancement, as well as the necessary fight against piracy, which finally sees a point of arrival."
The auction, described as a 'matrioska' tender due to its complexity, offers an array of possibilities for broadcasters. For instance, they can jointly purchase the broadcasting rights for all ten matches of each of the thirty-eight matchdays, with exclusive broadcasting rights to five matches each.
An additional configuration provides a shared acquisition of rights to broadcast nine out of ten matches, with the tenth being broadcast free-to-air by a third party. This represents a historic opening of the championship to generalist television, which De Siervo explained as "football on free-to-air is no longer a taboo".
The tender also allows for the exclusive sale of three matchdays to one broadcaster, with two others dividing the remaining thirty-five. Further package options continue the last triennium’s scheme, with seven exclusive matches for one broadcaster and the remaining three shared with another.
The Serie A League also does not rule out the possibility of creating its own official channel, a plan B in case the auction does not succeed. The proposal under consideration is a binding agreement for a decade with a financial entity, which would then be free to distribute the channel offering the League a minimum guarantee and to present itself on the market in turn.
The unanimous approval of the document was met with applause from the representatives of the Serie A clubs. The tender's complexity could see the League's coffers swell with a record-breaking €7.2 billion over the next five years or even more. The minimum price of the packages will be €1.2 billion per championship for the three-year period starting from the 2024/25 season, with a 10% increase in the event of a four-year sale, and a 20% increase for a five-year sale.
The official announcement of the tender is eagerly anticipated by the end of May or beginning of June. Expressing his satisfaction with this groundbreaking decision, the President of the Serie A League, Lorenzo Casini, stated, "This is an epochal day in the history of TV rights commercialization. The fact that it was approved unanimously shows awareness and the desire to strengthen the role of the League."
As Italian football continues to excel in Europe, with five semi-finalists across three continental competitions, Serie A is poised and ready for the highest bidder. This unanimous approval signifies a critical step towards aligning the Serie A League with other European leagues, heralding a new era in the commercialization of its broadcasting rights.
To be continued... stay tuned.
Current media rights
The current domestic broadcasting rights for Serie A in Italy are held by Sky Sport, which broadcasts 114 live matches, and DAZN, which broadcasts all matches. These contracts are in place from 2021 to 2024.
The Melandri law
The Melandri Law, named after Italian politician Giovanna Melandri who proposed it, is an Italian law concerning the distribution of TV rights revenue for football matches in the Italian league.
Before the introduction of the Melandri Law in 2008, individual clubs in Italy negotiated their own TV rights deals. This led to a significant imbalance in income across the league, as larger, more successful clubs were able to negotiate far more lucrative deals than their smaller counterparts.
The Melandri Law sought to correct this imbalance by introducing collective bargaining for TV rights. It mandated that the sale of TV rights for football matches be conducted collectively, with the resulting revenue distributed among the clubs in a more equitable manner.
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The distribution of the revenue is based on several factors, including the number of matches broadcast, historical results, and the size of the club's fan base. This system aims to promote financial fairness and competitive balance within the league.
The law also established rules for the sale of these rights, with a view to preventing monopolies and encouraging competition among broadcasters. However, it's important to note that while the law set up the framework for collective bargaining, it does not determine the specific details of each rights package, which are negotiated separately.
Overall, the Melandri Law was a significant shift in the way TV rights are managed in Italian football, and its principles continue to shape the industry today.
In italiano
"La Serie A fa un passo avanti: diritti televisivi in vendita e centralizzazione degli archivi"
Nel corso di un'assemblea tenutasi nella sede di Via Rosellini a Milano, la Lega Serie A ha approvato all'unanimità la composizione del bando per l'asta dei diritti televisivi del campionato per i prossimi anni. Una decisione salutata con un lungo applauso dai presidenti e dirigenti presenti.
Lorenzo Casini, presidente della Lega Serie A, ha commentato: "Oggi è una giornata importante, le società hanno approvato all’unanimità il bando e la modifica dello statuto, per la prima volta la Legge Melandri ha riconosciuto l’importanza di una centralizzazione dell’archivio corrente". La decisione unanime consentirà di pubblicare il bando con questo pacchetto sull'archivio corrente, un principio fondamentale per l'organizzazione del campionato negli anni a venire.
Questo bando, che prevede otto pacchetti di offerta con diverse configurazioni, stabilisce un prezzo minimo di 1,2 miliardi di euro all'anno per l'offerta triennale. Tale cifra aumenterà del 10% in caso di vendita a quattro anni e di un ulteriore 10% in caso di vendita a cinque anni.
"Abbiamo deciso di pubblicare un bando estremamente ampio: comprende otto pacchetti e tre configurazioni diverse al loro interno, modello ‘matrioska`. Per quanto riguarda i pacchetti abbiamo previsto tutte le possibilità, da una condivisione piena delle 10 gare fino ad opzioni con maggiori esclusive, anche con la gara in chiaro al sabato sera", ha spiegato Luigi De Siervo, Amministratore Delegato della Lega Serie A.
Dopo essersi distinta a livello europeo con ben cinque squadre semifinaliste nelle tre competizioni continentali, la Serie A italiana è ora pronta a presentarsi al miglior offerente. La Lega Serie A ha infatti approvato all’unanimità la composizione del bando per l’asta dei diritti televisivi delle stagioni sportive a partire dal 2024/25.
Questo bando matrioska, così definito per la sua complessità, offre otto pacchetti differenti alle emittenti interessate a trasmettere le partite del massimo campionato italiano. Ciascun pacchetto presenta configurazioni uniche, offrendo una serie di opzioni alle emittenti.
Nel corso di una conferenza stampa, De Siervo ha illustrato le possibili strade per chi parteciperà al bando. "Le emittenti potranno acquistare in condivisione le dieci gare di ciascuna delle trentotto giornate del campionato, trasmettendone cinque a testa in esclusiva", ha spiegato.
Inoltre, la Lega Serie A non esclude la possibilità di creare un proprio canale ufficiale, un piano B nel caso in cui l'asta non dovesse avere successo. "Per un periodo di 10 anni un soggetto finanziario può, come distributore del canale, offrire un minimo garantito e presentarsi sul mercato", ha concluso De Siervo. "La Lega Serie A dovrebbe quindi uscire dalla dinamica del bando, confezionare un canale con all'interno inserita la pubblicità".
Questo potrebbe rappresentare un'importante svolta per il calcio italiano. Il bando, grazie alla sua complessità, potrebbe fruttare alla Lega una cifra record di 7,2 miliardi di euro nei prossimi cinque anni, se non di più. Il prezzo minimo dei pacchetti sarà infatti di 1,2 miliardi di euro a campionato per il triennio che partirà dalla stagione 2024/25, con un aumento del 10% in caso di vendita a quattro anni e del 20% in caso di vendita a cinque anni.
Lorenzo Casini ha espresso la sua soddisfazione: "è una giornata epocale per la storia della commercializzazione dei diritti televisivi. Il fatto che sia stata approvata all'unanimità dimostra la consapevolezza e la volontà di rafforzare il ruolo della Lega".
Ora, in attesa della pubblicazione del bando, prevista tra fine maggio e inizio giugno, l'intero panorama calcistico italiano è pronto per un'evoluzione senza precedenti, che porterà la Lega Serie A ad allinearsi alle più importanti leghe europee.
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1 年Looks like Série A has learnt from NFL by slicing and dicing the rights to the maximum. This is also the consequence of DAZN technical issues, bringing potentially another streamer will allow to benchmark, smart.
SVP Sport Creative Technology Every live event has to deliver the "WOW". The landscape is more crowded & traditional B2B revenue (sponsor & b'cast) is threatened. We bring your event to life with nextgen innovation.
1 年I know I'm not alone in wondering how many channels can people possibly subscribe to? Where is that tipping point? When will sport be over exposed? Not yet for sure but with the advent of so many new sports (PTO, FormulaE, ExtremeE, Airspeeder, eScooter, Kings League, XFL, eBike, all the various eSports etc etc) and the growing interest in Women Sport I just can't see media rights increasing forever. We need aggregation..... Not everyone can be the Premier League, ICC or the NFL...
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1 年Keep up the amazing work and continue inspiring others with your exceptional performance. Wishing you many more victorious moments! ??
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1 年Thanks for Sharing.
Founder at Albachiara SAGL
1 年Carlo, the fact they put out a tender doesn't mean they get the values they've put as minimum.