The recent announcement of the £6.7bn Premier League rights deals has sparked a flurry of discussion and analysis. While on the surface, this might seem like a win for the league, data and analytics specialist GlobalData suggests otherwise.
The £6.7bn deal sees Sky Sports and TNT Sport securing agreements for Premier League broadcasting until the end of the 2028/29 season. This is an increase from the previous £5.1 billion paid by Sky Sports, TNT Sports, Prime Video, and BBC Sport in 2018's auction.
However, GlobalData raises concerns about these traditional broadcasters' dominance in acquiring sports rights deals over streaming services. The lack of competition from streaming platforms is particularly notable given Amazon's loss of rights for their 'Christmas' package - suggesting that such services are not interested in taking on the UK market.
Conrad Wiacek, head of sport analysis at GlobalData, said:
“The Premier League will rightly be delighted to have secured a new media rights deal with Sky and TNT in the UK market. On the surface, the deal is a success and an increase for the Premier League on its previous deal, guaranteeing the league $8.45 billion (£6.7 billion) in revenue over the next four years.
“However, in real terms the deal is a loss for the Premier League. More games are available in the packages, and the term is over four years as opposed to the three year cycles the Premier League has previously operated in simply meaning a lower cost per game, which is great for consumers but less so for the Premier League.
“There was an expectation the Amazon, Apple and DAZN would be in the running for rights yet none of have challenged the incumbents in Comcast owned Sky and Warner Bros Discovery owned TNT. In fact, with Amazon losing rights for the ‘Christmas’ package, its suggests that the streaming services have no interest in attempting to take on the UK market. With Amazon and Apple positioning themselves effectively in the US market, and DAZN having rights in several key European markets, the UK sports rights market is still dominated by Sky and will be for the foreseeable future.”
The numbers are just an illusion
While at first glance it may appear that this deal represents a significant financial gain for Premier League - with an increase from £5.1 billion to £6.7 billion - there are factors which suggest this might not be as successful as it seems.
Firstly, more games are being offered in these packages compared to before; thus diluting per-game value despite an overall increase in total value.
Secondly, while these new deals begin with the 2025/26 season and extend over four years instead of three-year agreements seen previously – offering longer-term security – they also come with caveats that could potentially affect their perceived success.
According to GlobalData's analysis, despite what appears to be a 4% increase in live rights value compared to previous auctions (as claimed by Premier League), when considering additional games now included within packages under longer-term contracts; it could actually represent a real-term loss for the league.
The loss of interest from streaming platforms
The Premier League's recent rights deals highlight the ongoing dominance of traditional broadcasters like Sky and TNT while streaming services like Amazon Prime seem to be stepping back from competing in this arena. This could potentially shape the future landscape of sports broadcasting, particularly in markets like the UK.
While these new deals may appear successful on the surface, a deeper analysis suggests that they might not be as beneficial for Premier League as initially thought. As sports fans and betting enthusiasts continue to follow developments closely, it will be interesting to see how these dynamics play out over time.
