Barcelona D Gerard Pique's Kosmos and Enjoy Television have acquired the Spanish rights to Ligue 1 for the next three seasons. The previous contract for Ligue 1's Spanish rights, held by Movistar+, was worth around €2.5M ($2.9M) per year. Kosmos is looking to "capitalize on the Lionel Messi effect in French soccer," joining forces with Enjoy Television to acquire the Ligue 1 and Ligue 2 rights. The financial terms of the agreement were not revealed. Kosmos and Enjoy Television are now working on a sub-licensing agreement, "as their objective is to find a TV channel or OTT platform for the broadcasts," meaning they will "initially assume the investment risk until they find a broadcaster." Messi reuniting with Neymar "is the principal attraction of the deal," as well as former Real Madrid D Sergio Ramos' debut with PSG. 

Kosmos' bet on Ligue 1 follows "the strong results it enjoyed for its Copa America coverage this summer," when it broadcast the competition on the Twitch channel of Spanish streamer Ibai Llanos. Llanos' channel will carry Reims-PSG for free on Sunday when Messi makes his PSG debut, and the match will also air on Telecinco, which acquired the rights to that match (2PLAYBOOK, 8/25).

It is "possible that Ligue 1 games could air for free in Spain after Kosmos bought the Copa America rights this summer and it was Llanos who broadcast the competition live." Now, "that possibility is more likely because of Llanos' close relationship with Messi." However, Kosmos is "investing considerably more in the Ligue 1 rights than it spent on the Copa America rights (AS, 8/25).

Australian Football League CEO Gillon McLachlan officially announced that Perth's Optus Stadium will host the '21 grand final if the Melbourne Cricket Ground "can’t due to COVID-19 restrictions." With the "growing COVID crisis in Melbourne, the league has been forced to name a back-up plan" in case the MCG cannot host the decider for a second consecutive year. McLachlan confirmed that he had spoken to Western Australia Premier Mark McGowan to "confirm the AFL’s decision." The Gabba in Queensland hosted last year’s grand final. Sources said that South Australia "was in contention but WA has won the bidding rights if the game moves outside of Victoria, with McLachlan citing 'capacity'" -- targeting 100% -- as the "main reason Optus Stadium was selected" (THE WEST AUSTRALIAN, 8/25).

The AFL "cannot confirm a venue for the grand final until the Victorian government gives the league consent to move it from the MCG, which is contracted to host the grand final" until '58. McLachlan said, "We are still talking to the Victorian government, I’m here talking with their full knowledge" (THE AGE, 8/25).

The Mexican Football Federation (FMF) announced a reduction to FIFA's original two-match ban for anti-gay chants heard at Olympic qualifying matches last March. A statement released by the FMF explained that due to the organization's "efforts toward eradicating discrimination at matches," FIFA decided to "diminish the initial penalty." The FMF said in its statement, "The Appeals Committee at FIFA has resolved that the sanction imposed by the Disciplinary Committee for two games without fans be reduced to one game."

Mexico will enforce the ban on Sept. 2, when the senior men's team faces Jamaica in its first World Cup qualifier at the Estadio Azteca. El Tri's second home qualifier is scheduled for Oct. 7 against Canada, a match "currently set to feature fans in stands unless more penalties are handed down" for incidents involving Mexico fans at the CONCACAF Nations League and Gold Cup earlier this year. Prior to FIFA's reduction, "it was expected that Mexico would divide its two-match punishment between the senior men's team and its senior women's team, due to a loophole in the original wording of the statement announcing the sanctions" (ESPN.com, 8/25).

FIFA President Gianni Infantino has said English clubs have an "obligation to release players for international duty" and has appealed to U.K. PM Boris Johnson to grant quarantine exemptions to those returning from countries on the U.K.’s red list. EPL clubs unanimously decided on Tuesday not to release players for the forthcoming international break who face a 10-day quarantine on their return. The English Football League followed suit on Wednesday while, in a separate dispute with FIFA, LaLiga has confirmed it will "support Spanish clubs that refuse to release players" for CONMEBOL fixtures. Should the stalemate continue, FIFA could "ban players from featuring for their clubs until five days after the end of an international break" (London GUARDIAN, 8/25).

Italy's Serie A also released a statement on Wednesday "saying they would support clubs that do not release players." Infantino said in a statement, "I am calling on a show of solidarity from every member association, every league, and every club, to do what is both right and fair for the global game. Many of the best players in the world compete in leagues in England and Spain, and we believe these countries also share the responsibility to preserve and protect the sporting integrity of competitions around the world" (REUTERS, 8/25).

Netflix has released the first trailer for "Schumacher," its upcoming documentary on former F1 driver Michael Schumacher, including contributions from the seven-time world champion’s family and Sebastian Vettel. "Schumacher" is set to be released on Netflix on September 15 and will "explore Schumacher’s success in F1 and life off-track with full support from his family." The trailer features interviews with Schumacher’s father, his wife, and his two children, including current Haas F1 driver Mick Schumacher. Current Aston Martin F1 driver Vettel is "also part of the trailer, having looked up to Schumacher throughout his racing career." "Schumacher" marks Netflix’s "latest foray into F1" after achieving considerable success with "Drive to Survive," which is currently filming for its fourth season (MOTORSPORT.com, 8/25).

Nearly a quarter of households in Tokyo and surrounding areas watched the opening ceremony of the Paralympics on television, an audience ratings firm said Wednesday. Preliminary data by Video Research Ltd. showed that the average viewership in the Kanto region for the ceremony, which aired live Tuesday on public broadcaster NHK, was 23.8%. The ratings peak in the region was 26%, "recorded in the part of the ceremony when Paralympic athletes from around 160 nations were entering the National Stadium." In the Kansai region centering on Osaka in western Japan, "the ratings for NHK's live broadcast of the ceremony averaged 17.8 percent" (KYODO, 8/25).

Barcelona MF Sergio Busquets has reportedly agreed to "further reductions and deferrals to his salary to help the club reduce their wage bill," becoming the third Barcelona player to accept a pay cut after D Gerard Pique and D Jordi Alba (ESPN.com, 8/25).

Spanish second division side Málaga, which posted a profit of €1.5M ($1.8M) for the '20-21 financial year, plans to complete work on its new training facility, a €25M ($29M) project, with most of the funding coming from the investment Spanish soccer clubs are receiving from CVC Capital Partners (2PLAYBOOK, 8/25).

LaLiga side Celta Vigo named Marco Rocha its director of communications and content. Rocha previously worked at the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) from '13-18, helping to launch the federation's TV channel, SefTV (2PLAYBOOK, 8/24).

T1Markets, a forex and CFDs broker, has signed a sponsorship deal with the Argentine FA (T1Markets).

There "soon will be anti-projectile netting" installed in front of the south stand at Ligue 1 side Nice' Allianz Arena after club and city officials "requested it" in response to Sunday's incidents which saw a Nice fan throw a bottle at a Marseille player before fans invaded the pitch (AFP, 8/25).

The LPGA Shanghai tournament has been canceled due to COVID-19 travel restrictions in China, the elite women's professional golf circuit said on Wednesday (REUTERS, 8/25).

The R&A will scrap a controversial "no-readmission" policy for those attending the Open, starting at St. Andrews in '22. Since '17 at Royal Birkdale, Open ticket holders have had "no scope to leave and return to the tournament venue on any given day" (London GUARDIAN, 8/25).

Financial regulators have "looked into suspicions of insider trading in Daimler and Aston Martin shares, including the purchase of a stake" in the U.K. luxury carmaker by Mercedes F1 Team Principal Toto Wolff, but no evidence was found to "proceed with an investigation" (FINANCIAL TIMES, 8/25).

"Kylian [Mbappe] is the centre of our project but he isn't above it. If he stays or he goes, it will always be with our conditions. If he wants to go, he'll go, but with our conditions like any other player. We won't change the plan a week from the close of the market" -- PSG Sporting Dir Leonardo, on talks between his club and Real Madrid regarding Kylian Mbappe (ESPN.com, 8/25).

"Suffice to say from a broad perspective -- and this applies with anything that we’re looking at in sport -- if rights are split with a major sport like the NRL, the value of those rights gets diluted" -- Nine Network CEO Mike Sneesby, on the National Rugby League potentially selling the State of Origin series and premiership matches as separate entities (THE AUSTRALIAN, 8/25).

"If we want to make a great league, you have to invest. This is one of the reasons for the deal with the fund (CVC). You have to invest" -- LaLiga side Villarreal President Fernando Roig, on LaLiga's deal with CVC (MARCA, 8/25).

ESPN.com's Gabriele Marcotti believes the EPL "can't be allowed to undermine World Cup qualifiers" and predicts that it "probably won't."

The London Independent's Miguel Delaney reacts to the news that F Harry Kane will remain at Tottenham, writing that Kane not playing in this year's Champions League "may not be great for a star in his prime, but it is good for the competitive balance in the game."

A look at the new Tim Hortons & Tencent Esports x Coffee store that opened in Shenzhen, China this month.

The two companies are building a new type of experience for gamers with esports at the center, including a dedicated esports zone, interactive spaces, themed drinks etc... pic.twitter.com/6PKcEOU2uy

— Daniel Ahmad (@ZhugeEX) August 25, 2021

Paying homage to the 7 year partnership between Nike & @ASRomaEN, @PTrophyStudio has produced a 1 of 1 mashup shirt dubbed 'Colosseum', which combines a piece of every home and away kit from the Nike era.

Closer look: https://t.co/sv1tOdvT4z pic.twitter.com/RJd12kNCOz

— SoccerBible (@SoccerBible) August 25, 2021