French soccer’s governing body LFP and ITV, the UK commercial broadcaster, have announced a deal that sees ITV air a weekly Ligue 1 highlights show in the UK during the current 2024/25 season.
The show made its debut on the ITV4 channel in the 6:25pm slot on October 30, during matchday 9, while also being available on the ITVX streaming platform.
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Notable clashes from matchday 9 included Marseille versus Paris Saint-Germain, Lens taking on Lille, and Nice against Monaco.
Martin Aurenche, chief media officer at LFP Media, has said: “We’re delighted to bring highlights of our championship to the widest possible audience in the UK. Partnering with a major player like ITV is a unique opportunity in terms of exposure.
“We are confident that this will give our league an unprecedented spotlight and educate English football fans about ‘Football à la Française’.”
All Ligue 1 matches are also available to stream live on the Ligue 1 Pass service in the UK and Ireland. That in-house platform is being used after a broadcast partner for 2024-25 could not be found.
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By GlobalDataRichard Botchway, assistant commissioner at ITV Sport, added: “We are looking forward to bringing Ligue 1 to the ITV audience and showcase the very best footballing talent the French league has to offer.
“The deal with LFP Media ensures free to air coverage across ITV4 and ITVX, where football fans can enjoy weekend highlights from the likes of Olympique de Marseille, Paris Saint-Germain, Lille OSC, among many others.”
During the last rights cycle, the TNT Sports pay-TV broadcaster held Ligue 1 rights. However, following the departure of French superstar Kylian Mbappe (formerly of Ligue 1 champions Paris Saint-Germain) to Spanish giants Real Madrid, interest in the property has declined.
Earlier this week, Eurovision Services, the leading broadcast services provider, agreed a deal with the LFP to serve as the worldwide distributor of its top-flight Ligue 1 and second-tier Ligue 2. The three-year contract will start immediately with the ongoing 2024-25 season and run through the 2026-27 campaign.
ITV, meanwhile, has renewed its deal with the English Football Association (FA) this week to remain the home of the women’s national team’s matches for another four years.
The deal, which covers the 2025-29 cycle, will see the broadcaster show all the Lionesses’ qualifying fixtures for the 2027 FIFA Women’s World Cup and 2029 UEFA Women’s Euro, as well as the team’s UEFA Women’s Nations League campaigns and all international friendlies.
ITV’s soccer portfolio also includes the FA Cup domestic knockout men's cup competition, although this will shift to pay-TV broadcaster TNT Sports from the 2025-26 season. The commercial broadcaster additionally holds a package of free-to-air rights to Spain’s top-flight LaLiga.
