The sale of broadcasting rights has been a key revenue generator for football clubs for the past few decades. The recent convergence of the telecommunications and broadcasting industries has changed the media landscape. Consequently, media outlets are prepared to bid higher than ever for exclusive football broadcasting rights. The KPMG Football Benchmark team analyzed the price evolution seen in domestic broadcasting rights across the European big-five, the Premier League, La Liga, Serie A, the Bundesliga and Ligue 1. In '16 the Bundesliga will sign a new broadcasting agreement for the '17-21 period, from which German clubs expect a significant increase. While Germany’s population and GDP per capita are the highest among the five countries under review, the current deal ('14-17), averaging €628M ($684M) per season and €2.1M ($2.3M) per game, proves that the Bundesliga does not seem to be able to capitalize on the huge economic power of the German market. Across the water, and thanks to the deal signed at the beginning of '15, the Premier League has reinforced its leading position in terms of domestic broadcasting revenues. The competition between Sky and British Telecom has led to a remarkable sum being offered, close to €2.4B ($2.6B) per season. However, the figures are even more impressive if analyzed on a price per game basis. Unlike other leagues, domestically, the Premier League goes for quality over quantity by only selling the right to broadcast 168 matches out of a total 380 matches played each season. With the new deal, this translates to a jump from €8.4M ($9.2M) ('13-16) to €14M ($15M) per game. La Liga has experienced the most relevant regulatory changes in recent years. Until last season, Spanish clubs were allowed to sell their broadcasting rights individually. Although the Royal Decree enforcing the collective bargaining of broadcasting rights will come into effect only from the '16-17 season, the clubs have agreed to proceed in advance with a joint negotiation for the on-going season, for which a total sum of €600M ($653M) has already been allocated. At the current growth rate, broadcasting revenues are now cementing themselves as the most significant source of revenue for football clubs in most markets. However, despite the booming price of domestic broadcasting rights across Europe, the difference in revenue among the leading European leagues and the Premier League has widened significantly (KPMG).
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