Four media companies seeking Serie A rights

Liam Watson

Italian top-flight Serie A has seen four media companies vying for the league’s broadcast rights in the upcoming 2021 to 2024 cycle.

Serie A is looking to move into its next phase of a broadcast rights agreement, seeking €1.15bn (1.81 billion AUD) a year.

The four bidders – Sky, DAZN, Mediapro and Discovery, were all unable to match Serie A’s requirement of an 18 per cent uplift on its current deals. Serie A executives will talk with each bidder about a possible increase in their offers.

Amazon were one of the potential bidders for the Serie A rights but they were seeking a limited package. It would’ve been akin to the digital giants’ rights deal with the English Premier League, but that is not what Serie A is after.

“I think there is room to improve the offers, they were not so bad as some could expect given the situation with the coronavirus pandemic,” Lega Serie A chief executive Luigi De Siervo said.

“We knew that Amazon had asked for a package on the model of the Premier League, which covers three days and that would upset our strategy.

“We consciously believed, in design of the packages not to have to change our approach to the market. In this historical moment interest from with certain operators is lower, but this should not change our approach so that viewers have to subscribe to an additional platform.”

While there is no clear frontrunner, it appears promising for DAZN. The UK-based digital sports media company has a secondary package of domestic Serie A rights, but they are aiming to take a step up and become the league’s main broadcaster.

“DAZN is a well-known brand and has become a dominant platform in other territories,” De Siervo said.

“It aims to take on the biggest central broadcast role Sky has had for many years. [Sky] also has the opportunity and resources to compete, reach and overcome a ‘big offer’ in the second phase of negotiations.”

Il Sole 24 Ore reports that Sky and Infront had submitted bids that would see them establish and manage a branded Serie A channel. However, advanced talks will only occur if a deal can’t be reached in private pay-TV contract negotiations or the second round of conversations with bidders.

Discussion with the four bidders begins on February 5th, with the plan of finalising a deal by February 8th.

Key concerns for FIFPRO’s Player Workload Monitoring report

Avatar
Image credit: Jude Bellingham Instagram

FIFPRO has recently released their annual Player Performance and Recovery report for 2024, this report is developed by FIFPRO IQ in conjunction with Football Benchmark, a leading data and analysis group on football business.

The report explains in detail the problems facing professional footballers by leaders within the industry and the players themselves. This report not only factors in the physical impact of the sport but also the psychological impact.

FIFPRO’s Player Workload Monitoring tool (PWM) the primary system behind this report monitors 1500 players spread across 100 leagues and 150 nationalities.

They have pointed out the obvious lack of appreciation by tournament organisers for the physical and mental well-being of football players and an evident lack of organised calendar planning.

Acting FIFPRO General Secretary Stephane Burchkalter stressed the importance of this report via press release:

“We release these reports for a good reason. Because, today, we face one of the most serious and urgent problems in our sport. A problem that results from the abuse of governance and a failure of the duty of care. The holistic workload that confronts our players is unprecedented. It has produced a physical and mental fatigue that is now dangerous.”

With increased match loads, travel loads and shortening of preparation the risks have never been higher with 54% of PMW players experiencing excessive or high-demand workloads.

88% of players’ time is recorded to be spent in the workplace environment and 17% in national team environments.

The world-renowned Uruguayan coach Marco Bielsa stated via press release:

“To ignore the consequences of the number of games and amount of travelling will end in injuries for any player.”

This report identifies that some players have seen their free time fall to nearly 12% of the calendar year, which adds up to less than a single day off per week. This fails to comply with international Occupational Safety and Health standards.

There have been calls for a guaranteed rest period which 72% of players and 78% of coaches support.

As the demand for games grows and the push for more revenue skyrockets, the players see their health and voices continue to deteriorate.

This report and FIFAPRO highlight the firm action that needs to happen to protect the stars of the sport.

For more information about the report, read more here.

AFCAS recruitment and scouting workshops coming to Australia

Avatar
Image credit: AFCAS website

The Association of Football Coaching and Scouting (AFCAS) have confirmed that their recruitment and player scouting workshops are coming to Australia.

These interactive workshops are all online and led by AFCAS managing director Ged Searson – a professional football scout with over 15 years of experience and who has also been a football coach for almost 30 years, learning from the likes of Sir Bobby Robson.

Searson has previously worked as a scout for clubs such as West Ham United, Grimsby Town FC and Leyton Orient FC in England.

Most recently, he served as the chief scout and analyst of the Malawi national team during the 2022 African Cup of Nations in Cameroon going as far as the Round of 16.

The workshops run for three and a half hours over two evenings and are designed for both new and experienced football scouts aiming to enhance their skills and development.

This will also be helpful for football coaches and agents to help them improve their scouting abilities and also to gain an understanding of the recruitment process at professional football clubs.

Throughout these workshops, video footage will be used to complete scouting tasks giving participants the chance to practice scouting techniques.

Attendees will also develop a better understanding of how professional clubs scout players and how recruitment systems operate at the highest levels of football.

Some of the content in these workshops will include:

  • Learning various professional football scouting techniques and skills.
  • Learn how to write and create your own scouting reports.
  • Understanding different types of scout reporting and assignments.
  • Assessing player performance in different playing positions.

These workshops are limited to nine attendees, creating opportunities to interact with not only the presenter but also fellow attendees and it will provide potential networking opportunities with different people in the football industry.

Participants will also receive a scouting pack, including software, to complete their own scouting reports following the workshop.

The sessions will run on Wednesday, September 11 from 7 pm – 10:30 pm and on Friday, September 13 from 6:30 pm – 10 pm.

If you are interested in having a career in the football industry, click the link to claim your spot in these online workshops.

For more information about AFCAS, visit the website.

Most Popular Topics

Editor Picks

Send this to a friend