TV Rights Research Articles

Globalisation of Professional Sport Finance

The objective of the present paper is to put a milestone on the roadmap toward a global economic system of professional sport, at least as regards its financial dimension, i.e., its model of finance, its ownership, and some new trends in global sport finance. Professional sport went through a radical change during the 1990s when switching from gate receipts to TV rights revenues as its major source of finance and from local/domestic to internationalised/globalised sources of revenue. This change was more marked in European soccer (football) before spreading throughout other professional sport disciplines. In fact, the whole distribution of sport financing was restructured as shown in this paper. Starting from this evidence of the first stage of sport finance globalisation, it appears that new transformations have been at work in sport finance more recently. In particular, soccer moved from globalisation of flows (revenues, finance) to asset globalisation in terms of club ownership. At last, this paper discusses the emergence of new trends in global sport finance such as treating professional (soccer) players as financial assets and crypto-assets penetrating the sports business.

Is gender a sustainability balance driver in football?

The paper focuses on the possibility that differences between men's and female's football (not only considering players' physical attributes and technical performances, economic aspects as ticketing, sponsorships, tv rights, merchandising, but also behavioral insights) could lead clubs to enrich their CSR goals. Literature underlines how women's football shows behavioral and psychological characteristics that make it unique and requires focus and tactics more tailored to the female interpretation of this sport. This could attract the segments of the market which care about cooperation, trust and inclusion without forgetting profitability: investing in females' soccer could constitute, therefore, a way for football clubs to signal how much they care about inclusion and to improve their overall image. Moreover, educating girls to cope with a traditional "old boy game" like football could train them to better face situations of real world unfair competition. Results from an "ad hoc" built questionnaire handled to a sample of nonprofessional (male and female) football players hopefully will contribute to build up a "new model" of CSR in football.

The Appraisal of Players' Transfer Market Values: Empirical Evidence From Italian Serie A

Abstract: This paper focuses on the determinants of transfer market valuations of Italian top division football players over the period 2007‒2017. We use data provided by transfermarkt.de to estimate the association between players' characteristics and their transfer valuation. Additionally, by applying panel regression techniques, we separate team and season effects from individual attributes. We find an inverted U-shaped association with age and a positive association with goals, assists, and minutes played in national and international competitions. Moreover, the financial sustainability of the clubs appears to be a key factor since potential accountability turmoil may cause a reduction in the bargaining power of clubs and on the players' market values consequently. Finally, season fixed effects show a statistically significant and strong negative trend of players' market appraisals. That result should be taken seriously by representatives of Serie A League as well as the Italian Football Federation because the recently pursued strategy of adjusting the decrease of conventional revenues (e.g., ticket sales, TV rights and sponsorship) with the capital gains coming from player transfers proves to be rather risky.

Economic impact of muscle injury rate and hamstring strain injuries in professional football clubs. Evidence from LaLiga.

The aims of this study were: 1) to describe the total muscular injuries, and specifically HSIs, and their corresponding missed matches; 2) to analyse their economic impact; and 3) to estimate the loss of incomes due to TV rights, in first division clubs from LaLigaTM depending on the expected and actual ranking position during the 2018/2019 season. To do that, a cross-sectional study for season 18/19 and for all players of the 20 Spanish professional football clubs was performed. The economic impact of injuries was estimated considering the missed matches and salary cost of all players and the audio-visual income loss was estimated considering the Spanish Royal Decree of Law (RDL 5/2015). The high number of muscular (270) and hamstring injuries (57) implies a high cost for professional first division football clubs, specifically € 365,811 per month for the former and € 47,388 per month for the latter. In addition, reaching a worse than expected position in LaLigaTM ranking involved a loss of 45,2 million € in TV rights incomes. The high cost of muscle injuries in first division teams justifies the need for multidisciplinary teams that are capable of reducing the number of injuries as well as recovery times.

Does Digitalization Accelerate the Winner-Takes-All Effect in the Sports Industry?

Abstract Today media and sports are indivisible, having a kind of inseparable, mutually influential relationship. Media attracts audiences and generates profit through sports. In its turn, sports content is disseminated, transmitted, and popularized through the media. Thus, theoretically, sports and media exist in symbiosis. However, practically, this relationship is complex and includes many factors. First of all, in recent decades, the process of overall digitalization (and digital transformation) of all fields of life has had a crucial impact on sport, media, and their interrelationship. This paper aims to conceptualize and analyze the possible impact of digitalization on “winner-takes-all” (WTA) (winner-takes-most, WTM) dynamics in the professional sports industry, notably for spectating audiences, and answer the question: “Can digitalization be seen as a driver of ecosystem change and how it should be tested?” This conceptual model paper seeks to construct and develop a theoretical framework that can explain and predict relationships between concepts of digitalization and key sport spectating variables: audience, TV rights, and revenue through a prism of WTA. We found that the technological change in the sports media market and the greater global-orientated strategy of leading sports organizations have re-sorted and compressed many market shares, but the effect of technological disruption has been significantly less pronounced for the most powerful digital leaders in the industry. To this end, we represent digitalization as the main accelerating factor of the WTA effect (along with other auxiliary effects) in the sports industry and propose future research directions and perspectives.

Economic analysis of the 12th man: Should the fans be paid?

The paper provides a theoretical sports league model to study the pricing of tickets. It considers the trade-off between maximizing match day revenues, through high prices, and maximizing the support of the most demonstrative fans, through low prices. These spectators, the “ultras” contribute to the competitive level of the club along with team-level talent, and therefore indirectly increase the number of victories, hence the revenue from TV rights. We model the role of effusive spectators and show that, in a non-cooperative Nash equilibrium, it may be optimal for the club to subsidize their presence in order to take full advantage of the 12th man effect.

The transfer market for non-big five clubs: The case of the Swiss Super League

Introduction
 The objective of this research is to study the strategies of Swiss first division clubs in the transfer market. In a context where the revenues of the big 5 clubs (before Covid-19) keep increasing (especially TV rights), the weak financial capacities of the non-big 5 clubs, especially in terms of their low revenues from media rights, push them to devise different strategies. Given the profiles of the clubs, how do they organise their strategy on the transfer market - T - (purchase-sale)? We seek to answer the following questions: What is the importance of transfers on the economic model of Swiss first division clubs? What share of their budget do they represent?
 Methods
 Market purchases/sales (from 2015 to 2020) define our T (Transfers). We therefore seek to understand the strategy of Swiss clubs in the transfer market from a purely economic point of view (we do not take into account the sporting aspect) and to see what profits Swiss clubs make thanks to T. We then compare, season by season and club by club, the results obtained on the transfer market in relation to the clubs’ budget. We supplement this quantitative data with qualitative interviews with scouting managers from 8 Super League clubs in order to understand the professionalization of Swiss clubs in this area. We carried out an empirical data processing - k-means - to propose a typology of the 12 Super League clubs according to their role in the transfer market and the importance of the T compared to their budget.
 Results
 
 Cluster 1 - The low importance of T: The T represents a very small part of the clubs’ budget in this cluster. Transfers have a very low importance here.
 Cluster 2 - Singularity of FC Basel: FC Basel is alone in this cluster with sales and purchases well above the other clubs.
 Cluster 3 - Confirmed importance of the T on sales: Clubs in this cluster are close to the cluster number 2. Sales are here very important for clubs.
 Cluster 4 - A balance of the T between purchases and sales: The purchases and sales are balanced. Clubs in this cluster sell and spend just as much to strengthen themselves.
 
 Discussion - Conclusion
 We can see that when a team succeeds in establishing itself in the Super League with stable revenues, it can hope to make purchases on the transfer market thanks to sponsorship or ticketing, which allow it to increase its budget. And when a team manages to qualify for European competitions, its strategy can be diversified and we can see teams making more substantial purchases. Moreover a club can move from one cluster to another quickly. The professionalisation of the scouting of young players also plays a very big role and the resources and professional skills of each club in this area can be very important.

Economic and sporting performance and players' registration rights in Italian soccer: connections

This study focuses on the possible links between the main revenues obtained from the financial statements of soccer clubs, players' registration rights (PRRs), and sports success. The topic is developed by processing much data from the Italian Premier League Soccer Championship (year 2017/2018) and a sample of 100 financial statements of Italian Serie A clubs for the period between 2013/2014 and 2017/2018. The data were analysed by the models of 'linear regression' and 'fixed effects for panel data' for more consecutive years. The study showed that there is a virtuous circle between the main revenues, players' registration rights, and sports success. The main revenues (TV rights, sponsors, and advertising) increase the PRRs and the possible capital gains derived from the termination that are often necessary to achieve the conditions of economic and financial balance required to register for soccer leagues. Investing in players' registration rights also leads to better sports results.

With new book and TV deal announced, activist laments Purdue settlement

Most observers would guess that a week featuring the release of a page‐turning account of a major event coupled with news of a TV rights deal for the book would leave the author on cloud nine. But speaking with Unsettled author Ryan Hampton gives the impression that the past months have taken a heavy toll on the recovery advocate whose latest book chronicles the Purdue Pharma bankruptcy proceeding.

PROFESIONALNI SPORT U REPUBLICI HRVATSKOJ ZA VRIJEME COVID-19 KRIZE: FROM A THREAT TO AN OPPORTUNITY FOR A BETTER STATUS OF PROFESSIONAL ATHLETES

The paper aims at analysing Croatian professional sport and the impact of the COVID-19 crisis on it. Football was taken as a model for other team sports because of the share of professional sports clubs in the Republic of Croatia in football. In addition, the legal framework set in football may apply to other sports for successfully developing a similar pattern. The analyses are conducted into the revenues (sponsorships, ticketing and TV rights), and expenses (expenses on behalf of players remuneration) of the football clubs in the First Croatian Football League, providing an overview of the professional status of sports clubs, athletes and coaches. It also encompasses an analysis into measures taken by the Government of the Republic of Croatia to support Croatian sport during the COVID-19 crisis. The COVID-19 crisis has been taken as a possible starting position for better regulation of sports in future, especially as regards the professional sports in the Republic of Croatia contributing significantly to the promotion of the Republic of Croatia worldwide.

She Kicks: The State of Competitive Balance in the Top Five Women’s Football Leagues in Europe

Competitive balance remains a core component of sport economics literature and an important management consideration for league organisers. This paper analyses competitive balance in the 'top five' women's football leagues in Europe longitudinally between 1997/98 and 2018/19. Using recognised measures of league concentration and dominance, the results display a mixed picture in respect of competitive balance across the five major women's leagues in European football. The women's football industry has seen positive growth during the last ten years while competitive balance in most of the leagues examined has remained relatively stable. Some significant differences were detected in the levels of concentration between leagues. There was also some variation in terms of some leagues being dominated by a fewer number of teams. However, these two measures of competitive balance (concentration and dominance) were not necessarily correlated with each other. In a broader governance context, questions remain over the potential for further growth in the women's game as leagues are moving towards commercialisation of TV rights from 2021 to 2022.

Financing and Financial Risks of Professional Sports Clubs in the Republic of Croatia

The system of financing sports clubs in the Republic of Croatia is the closest to a mixed model in which the main sources of financing are: budget funds and the economy. It is an indisputable fact that professional sports clubs in the Republic of Croatia from the beginning of the 1990s until today have actually relied mainly on city administrations and majority state-owned companies in terms of funding. In the total revenue structure of all major sports clubs in Croatia, all other revenues including the private sector, TV rights, ticket revenues, revenues from own marketing, were extremely small and in fact such an inadequate revenue structure of almost all clubs created “dependent clubs” that have become existentially addicted to public money in the case of non-commercial sports, or in the case of football addicted to UEFA revenues or player transfers which in turn have great variability. The paper examines and proves that the greatest impact on reducing financial risk in business have their own revenues generated by sports teams in Croatia. All the funds they receive from the budget or from sponsors from the economy are not enough to reduce the risk and the club to operate without difficulty.

Les supporters français de football sont-ils sensibles à l'incertintude du résultat ?

[eng] The idea that competitive balance increases the utility of fans, and therefore their spending and the revenue of professional clubs, lies at the heart of sports economics in general and the economics of football in particular. This notion of competitive balance is often invoked to explain the decisions of professional leagues to change the rules of competitions or the distribution of TV rights. However, the empirical literature shows that the relationship between competitive balance and fan demand is far from obvious. In this paper, we examine the idea of competitive balance as perceived by football fans. In the case of Ligue 1, it is mainly explained by medium- and long-term uncertainty, while in the case of the Champions League it is more a matter of long-term suspense. But uncertainty over the outcome is far from being the only factor explaining the demand for football since around 30% of fans report that they would always be willing to attend or watch games even in the hypothetical case that there is no suspense left.

Sponsorship by the food and beverage industries in Brazilian professional soccer: an obstacle to the promotion of healthy eating

Sponsorship by ultra-processed food and beverage companies is a common marketing practice in sports, capable of influencing consumers, with unknown effects in Brazil. The study aimed to identify the profile of food and beverage companies sponsoring professional soccer teams in Brazil and to associate the occurrence of this sponsorship with the teams' characteristics. The sample included companies from these industries sponsoring 20 major league soccer teams competing in the Brazilian Championship in 2018. The food companies were identified according to the products based on the NOVA classification, and information was obtained on the number of championships they had won in Copa Libertadores, the Brazilian Championship, and the state championships; time since the club was founded; region of Brazil; number of fans; and revenues from sponsorship/advertising and sale of TV rights. A total of 280 sponsors were identified, with repeat sponsors between teams, of which 11.5% were from the food industry, featuring ultra-processed products (9.4%) and 6.7% of ultra-processed beverages. Sponsorship by ultra-processed producers was more prevalent among teams that had won more championships in the Brazilian National Cup and Copa Libertadores and among those with more fans and higher revenues from sponsorship/advertising and sale of TV rights. The study revealed the significant presence of manufacturers of ultra-processed foods and beverages as soccer team sponsors, especially for the more popular teams that had won more championships, thus posing an obstacle to the promotion of healthy eating.

What drives sports TV rights? A comparative analysis of their evolution in English and French men’s football first divisions, 1980–2020

ABSTRACT This article consists of a comparative analysis of the evolution of TV rights in English Premier League and French Ligue 1 men’s football over the 1980–2020 period. It aims to understand the differences in this evolution in both leagues. It first reviews the literature on football TV rights in Europe then the history of pay-TV football in the UK and France. A framework to be tested is then suggested with the identification of 16 independent variables. Correlations are calculated between these variables and TV rights in England and France to test whether the suggested framework is supported by empirical evidence. These correlations enable to explain why TV rights for the Premier League have become much larger than for the Ligue 1. They show that the main driver for TV rights is the main domestic broadcaster’s turnover. They also enable the identification of a virtuous circle for the Premier League.

All Quiet in the Western (European Football) Front Regulation of Football in the European Continent

Regulation of football in Europe is, absent some piecemeal interventions (like sharing of TV rights) largely non-existent. This is the case, because the de facto regulator (UEFA, Union Europeenne of Football Associations) has no mandate to comprehensively address on its own competitive balance, the focal point of football, and, in more general terms, sports regulation. Various aspects of competitive balance are part and parcel of antitrust law. European Union (EU) law thus, comes into the frame, since this is the body of law regulating antitrust in the European continent. The European Union, nevertheless, has no mandate to regulate football comprehensively, even though it has the power to issue (non-sports specific) law (including competition law), which affects football, and UEFA must observe it. As a result, UEFA wants to but cannot regulate the hard core of sports regulation, whereas the European Union as is, cannot do much, and it is at best doubtful that it wants to anyway. Under the circumstances, because of the legislative conundrum, the “regulatory stalemate” we observe is probably the equilibrium point.

The Italian Serie A TV Rights Selling Model – Historical Study

In mid 2000s the tv rights income reaches a 873 million euro for the 2005-06 season, with the Serie A tv rights annual income to gradually increase from a 844 million euro for the 2009-10 season to an amazing approximate 1,4 billion euro for the 2018-21 season. All these years Lega Calcio experimented a lot in the designing and application of a tv rights selling mechanism and its accompanied tv rights income distribution model. The Greek Superleague followed similar paths with Lega Calcio, when for many years in early 2000s clubs could exploit their tv rights by themselves. Even later, in late 200s and after the establishment of SL and with the collective selling mechanism in use, this mechanism didn’t include all participating clubs. The study aims to show how could Greek Superleague higher management staff learn from the Serie A tv rights deal history and follow the league’s recent tv rights optimal collective selling practices.

The French Ligue 1 TV Rights Selling Model – Historical Study

In 1996, the Lega Calcio deal with RAI expired and the league signed deal with four media groups for 11 television packages, generating 100 million euro for the clubs. In mid 2000s the tv rights income reaches a 873 million euro for the 2005-06 season, with the Serie A tv rights annual income to gradually increase from a 844 million euro for the 2009-10 season to an amazing approximate 1,4 billion euro for the 2018-21 season. All these years Lega Calcio experimented a lot in the designing and application of a tv rights selling mechanism and its accompanied tv rights income distribution model. The study could be used by several professional football leagues, with the Greek Superleague being one of them, in order its higher management to evaluate the actions LFP undertook all these years and how these actions affected could be followed.

The German Bundesliga TV Rights Selling Model – Historical Study

The tv rights income for each Bundesliga club for the 1999/00 season was approximately 6 million euro, while for the 2001-2003 period, a new tv rights deal almost doubled the league annual revenues from 212 to 383 million euro. The next deal, for the 2004-2009 period, valued 440 million euro per season, and the 2009-2013 period deal was slightly lower, at the level of 412 million euro per season. Βundesliga succeeded a spectacular increase in their tv rights income with the 2013-17 period deal, securing 628 million euro per season. The purpose of the study is to show how the German football authorities marketed the German football championship and applied selling and income distribution mechanisms, in order to increase the rights value and the clubs revenues in a spectacular way over the last 20 years. The study could be useful to any football league that wants to develop and sell their televised product.

The English Premier League TV Rights Selling Model – Historical Study

Football games broadcasting started in 1964, with the highlights broadcasting every Saturday night. In 1983 the first live broadcasting took place, and since PL establishment, the public BBC and secondly the private ITV held the tv rights for 2 million pound per year. In 1988, ITV acquired the rights for four years until 1992. The 2007-10 period tv rights were sold for 1,706 billion pounds and the 2010-13 period deal increased their value to 1,773 billion pounds. With the current 2016-19 deal of 3,018 billion pounds, EPL is getting the amazing 5,136 billion pounds fee, making EPL the world’s second wealthiest sporting league – in tv rights annual income terms – only after the American National Football League. The purpose of the study is to show how the collective selling model of an attractive televised football product could generate high income to the clubs league.