DAZN, the over-the-top sports subscription platform, has retained exclusive rights in Canada to all of European soccer’s governing body UEFA’s club competitions for the upcoming three-year broadcast cycle, from the 2024-25 season to the 2026-27 season.
The deal marks the third consecutive cycle in which DAZN has partnered with UEFA to broadcast the competitions in Canada since taking over as exclusive rights holder from Canadian pay-television broadcaster TSN in May 2018.
Media rights sales for the 2024-27 season are being handled by Team Marketing, UEFA’s partner agency for media and commercial rights sales across its club competitions, with the tender process in Canada launched in October last year.
Pete Oliver, DAZN chief executive of growth markets, said: “DAZN is absolutely committed to bringing the best in sports entertainment to our customers in Canada, and the UEFA club competitions, which feature some the biggest clubs and players in world football, certainly deliver in terms of quality and drama.
“It’s also pleasing to see the continued faith UEFA has in DAZN for another three years, to help promote and grow their premium club competitions to reach ever more fans across Canada. All with DAZN’s excellent value and accessible pricing, and available across multiple smart TVs and other connected devices.”
The UEFA competitions join DAZN Canada’s coverage of the NFL, MLB, Six Nations, and German top soccer division the Bundesliga.
From the 2024-25 season, the Champions League will take on a new single-league format, with the competition expanding from 32 to 36 teams, and incorporating 189 matches instead of the current 125.
UEFA has already concluded deals in the US, with major broadcast network Paramount Global retaining English-language rights to the UCL through a six-year deal worth $1.5 billion, and media giant TelevisaUnivision renewing its Spanish-language rights.
DAZN also retained its position as the premier UCL broadcaster in Portugal, having snapped up the majority rights to the 2024-27 cycle in that country through its acquisition of previous rights-holder Eleven in February, and its subsequent Portuguese launch in July.
Contracts have also been signed across the continent in major markets such as the UK, France, the Netherlands, Germany, Italy, Denmark, Belgium, and Switzerland.
Last month, UEFA meanwhile opened its media rights tender for club competitions in the 2024-27 cycle in Turkey, covering the next three seasons of its top-tier UEFA Champions League (UCL), second-tier Europa League, and third-tier Europa Conference League (to be renamed the Conference League from 2024-25).
