Two-thirds of European sports fans reliant on free-to-air TV
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Editor
| 01 September 2021
Even though TV’s share of sports rights by value has grown by 20% in Western Europe the last decade, only one in three sport fans in the region has access to premium sport channels according to a report by the European Broadcast Union (EBU).
EBU Ampere 1 Sep 2021
Conducted by Ampere Analysis, the report, Sport on European TV: Maximising Commercial Value, was based on 21,000 interviews with European internet users across 12 markets, plus rights deal and revenue information compiled by the analyst covering over 1,000 rights deals in Europe.

Overall, the study found that free-to-air channels reach over 800 million Europeans, leading to increased engagement in sport, a greater audience reach and better value for sponsors. Yet the report stresses that for most sports, broadcast rights deals are fundamentally a trade-off between reach and revenue, The relative revenue mix is critical for sports rights holders.

The EBU noted that the value of a sport’s sponsorship rights is linked to its reach. A minute of airtime exposure across free-to-air European TV is worth €220,000 equivalent commercial value for sponsors. But, when a sport moves from a free to a premium TV channel, its reach drops by an average of 68% amongst sport fans.

With free TV attracting a more diverse range of sponsors, it can be more lucrative for many sports. The report suggested that tier 2 and 3 sports would require an uplift of over 40% in the value of their broadcast rights to offset the value of free TV reach if they were to go pay only.

Formula E was cited as a prime example of one sport that has seen substantial growth thanks to a combination of free-to-air exposure, digital strategies, and brand partnerships. Broadcast in Europe primarily by public service media organisations such as the BBC, Rai and RTVE, it has grown its global audience to around 411 million (2019) and its revenue has increased from $21 million in 2015 to $162 million, driven primarily by sponsorship and partnerships rather than broadcasting rights.

In a call to action from the Sport on European TV: Maximising Commercial Value report, Glen Killane director of sport at the EBU's Eurovision division said federations need to consider the balance between their rights revenue and the increased reach – and accompanying sponsor value - they gain from working with free-to-air channels, and suggested public service media can also help build sports’ brand and attract new fans to watch and participate.

“It’s particularly noticeable that demographic shifts mean younger audiences are especially hard to reach via traditional forms of paid TV distribution,” he remarked. “Our members’ VOD platforms, and our own work in providing digital exploitation solutions, offers new opportunities for sport federations to exploit all their rights beyond the confines of linear schedules.”

Ampere Analysis research director Richard Broughton added: "While every sport is at a different stage of development, and has different trade-offs to consider, it is nonetheless clear that sports federations face increasingly tough decisions around how their events should be televised. The era of hyper-inflation of rights income is ending, and it is not obvious that streaming services will support the headline values which many rights owners are hoping for. Against this backdrop, rights strategy - and the associated pros and cons which accompany any individual deal - needs careful consideration.”