Serie A woes continue as league tries to sell domestic TV rights

Serie A is struggling to secure domestic TV rights. With less-than-favorable bids rolling in, Serie A made the major decision to pause the current domestic rights bidding process. The current offers are still on the table, and they will be until October 15.

Sports Pro Mediareports the Italian top flight will not make any decision for the time being. The league reports that it still has work to do when it comes to reaching its target of broadcast revenue each season. Therefore, it would close the gap with other leagues, namely the Premier League.

“Despite some improvements…we have still work to do. Our goal remains to collect €1 billion per season,” Serie A chief executive Luigi de Siervo said to reporters.

Serie A told broadcasters they could make a variety of deals. That included three-, four- and five-year deals. In doing so, broadcasters would be more willing to have a desired package of games on their networks. In all, Serie A targeted just under $8 billion in a six-year span when it came to these deals. However, the only three bids to roll in came from MediaForEurope (formerly Mediaset), DAZN and Sky Italia. The latter two are the current deal holders with Serie A coverage in Italy.

However, these offers were below Serie A’s desired purchase price. There was no mention over how much these offers were.

Serie A fighting uphill battle for domestic TV rights

The key here is that the three bids were below the minimum aim for the league. These offers likely do not come close to the desired amounts exceeding $1 billion per season that Serie A set out for. Moreover, this compounds issues for Serie A.

The current deals with DAZN and Sky Italia expire at the end of the 2023/24 campaign. DAZN paid $2.75 billion for three years of Serie A coverage. Then, Sky Italia chips in with $289.5 million for a significantly smaller package of games. By comparison, the domestic TV rights holders for the Premier League pay $6.43 billion for a three-year deal. That means Serie A is receiving well over a billion less than the Premier League.

That money eventually trickles down to the clubs, which may contribute to greater success and the ability to buy players. For example, Manchester City earned $196,832,790 from the Premier League in 2021/22. It just won the treble with one of the best squads of all time, beating Italian outfit Inter Milan in the Final.

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