DAZN has just acquired the exclusive broadcast rights to the Club World Cup, which will take place in 2025. And, good news: it will be broadcast for free on the platform! One way to attract new subscribers…
As the 2024-2025 Ligue 1 season gets into full swing, many football fans find themselves frustrated. At issue: the DAZN platform, the “Netflix of sport”, has recovered the majority of the broadcasting rights for the event. However, the prices charged by the platform are far from cheap! It initially cost €19.99 per month (without commitment) to access a single match per day or €39.99 per month (without commitment) to enjoy all the matches (see our article)! Faced with the refusal of football fans to subscribe, prices have since been lowered, first through promotions, then permanently. Subscriptions therefore respectively increased to €14.99 per month and €19.99 per month (without commitment). Enough to completely confuse subscribers…
So, obviously, IPTV and other illegal solutions are attractive – 37% of people who watched Ligue 1 this season watched the matches using an illegal method, and 55% of the audience for the OM match PSG was carried out via illegal channels! –, and DAZN is struggling to recruit subscribers and achieve the objectives set at its launch! To attract football fans, the platform will try to capitalize on the interest in the new FIFA competition, The Club World Cup, for which it has just obtained the broadcasting rights, as reported The Team. And, good news, it will be possible to watch it for free!
Club World Cup: the long-awaited springboard for DAZN?
While Apple was approached for a time, it was ultimately the British platform that got the jackpot, signing a contract worth 1 billion euros. An agreement that she does not hesitate to describe as “revolutionary”. The competition, organized from June 15 to July 13 in the United States, will see the 32 best clubs compete – compared to 7 previously – of which PSG will be the only French representative. Its distribution will therefore be free on DAZN, provided you register by creating an account. Giovanni Infantino, FIFA President, welcomes this partnership: “Thanks to this broadcast agreement, billions of football fans around the world can now watch what will be the most widely accessible club football tournament of all time – and for FREE. Football unites the world.”
Be careful not to be mistaken, it is not pure generosity that drives the streaming platform, but calculated interest. This is a way to get your foot in the door and then convince these new subscribers to sign up for a paid subscription.
In addition, the tournament has been heavily criticized since its inception, and even more so since the adoption of its new format. Finding sponsors and broadcasters was not an easy task for FIFA! Particularly pointed out is its calendar, since it is held at the end of the national season and a Champions League, with a new formula which includes more matches.
The kick-off match will take place on Sunday June 15, 2025 at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, while the final is scheduled for July 13. Problem: this could have consequences on the national calendars for the 2025-2026 season, with a resumption of Ligue 1 which could be postponed. Many players have also expressed their fears about this sequence of matches and travel. It remains to be seen whether the public will be there.