Canal Plus, the Vivendi-owned French media giant, has announced the renewal of its exclusive distribution agreement with French-Qatari broadcaster BeIN for the continued carriage of the latter’s slate of sports channels.

Through the multi-year deal, Canal Plus subscribers in France will continue to receive BeIN’s slate of pay-TV sports channels as a part of their subscription at no added cost, with Canal also maintaining its position as the exclusive third-party platform distributor of BeIN Sports in France.

This deal means that Canal Plus customers both directly, and through its third parties, will have access to games from France’s top-tier Ligue 1 soccer competition broadcast on BeIN.

Earlier this month the French-Qatari broadcaster secured a package of Ligue 1 rights starting with the upcoming 2024-25 season and running through the end of the 2028-29 campaign, rights that see the broadcaster air the top fixture each week, or the second biggest game every other round for €100 million ($109 million) per year.

Canal Plus declined to bid on the rights as a result of the fallout of a long-term feud between the media group and French soccer’s LFP governing body regarding rights valuations in the previous cycle.

In a statement, BeIN Sports has now said: “This new deal is testament to the partnership of trust, respect and understanding that Canal Plus and BeIN Sports have developed over many years – both in France and worldwide – and the two leading sports, entertainment and media groups look forward to exploring ways to collaborate further with the collective mission of growing sport in France and worldwide.”

Other high-profile sports rights held by BeIN in France include French soccer’s second-tier Ligue 2, Spanish soccer’s top-tier LaLiga, and tennis’ Wimbledon Grand Slam tournament.