beIN Sports has appealed a Paris Commercial Court ruling ordering it to pay the full amount owed to LFP Media over its Saturday Ligue 1 rights package, extending an already long-running dispute with the French football body.
According to L’Équipe, the Qatari broadcaster has challenged the January 27 decision that required it to settle €14.13 million in outstanding payments, plus late-payment interest, taking the total to around €15 million.
The dispute centres on beIN Sports’ contract for Saturday afternoon Ligue 1 matches. The broadcaster had been withholding €4.71 million from each of three scheduled payments of €18 million during the current season, arguing that restrictions on the way it could exploit the rights had reduced the value of the package. It was also seeking €29 million in compensation.
Following the court ruling, beIN Sports paid the full amount due, but has now decided to continue the case before the Court of Appeal.
The latest move adds to a wider legal battle between beIN Sports, Canal+ and the Ligue de Football Professionnel. In a separate case, beIN Sports and Canal+ have already appealed to the Court of Cassation in a claim worth €660 million, arguing they were disadvantaged by the LFP’s 2021 Ligue 1 deal with Amazon. The broadcasters have lost at both trial and appeal level in that case, but are continuing their challenge.
The latest appeal comes as Ligue 1 prepares for another major change in its domestic rights distribution. From next season, beIN Sports will no longer carry Ligue 1 matches, with the league’s own Ligue 1+ platform set to show the full championship programme.
Ligue 1+ currently costs €14.99 a month and the subscription price is expected to rise from next season.
