PREMIER LEAGUE sides qualifying for the Champions League could earn an extra £30million per season after the latest TV shake-up – but fans will be picking up the tab.
It was revealed on Thursday that Paramount+ would be taking over Champions League broadcast duties from TNT Sport – previously BT Sport and now under the Discovery+ umbrella.
Whilst clubs rake in the cash, supporters pay the price of yet more subscriptions being required.
Sky Sports maintains its grip on Premier League coverage whilst also adding Europa and Conference League matches in 2027, when Paramount+ will take over from TNT as well.
TNT have some Prem games – usually the 12.30pm slot on a Saturday – whilst Amazon Prime get first pick from the Tuesday Champions League fixtures.
They also have Emirates FA Cup for the men and Adobe Women’s FA Cup rights.
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Some domestic cup games are also shown on free-to-air TV in the UK but that requires a license to be watched legally.
This all means that in order to watch everything from 2027/28, it could cost as much as £80 per month across four main subscriptions.
Include a TV license and that rises to five, although they are paid either quarterly or yearly.
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According to football finance expert Rob Wilson, this will only see the already large volume of pirating grow.
He told OLBG: “This creates frustration and accelerates the turn toward piracy, with OFCOM data suggesting that almost a quarter of young adult sports viewers already rely on illegal streams.
“As rights scatter across more platforms, fans face a more complex and expensive viewing landscape, with few signs of simplification on the horizon.
“However, rights values remain strong and continue to rise overall, but the shape of that value is changing.
“Broadcasters are becoming more selective, paying large premiums for must-watch content while avoiding expensive volume packages that do not guarantee returns.
“The UEFA rights cycle illustrates this clearly, with combined UK values estimated above £1.5billion per cycle but spread across more platforms.
“Fragmentation increases total market spend but reduces efficiency for broadcasters.
“Rights-holders benefit from higher revenues but broadcasters face tighter margins which spells more upheaval for staff.
How much does watching football cost?
The current cost of the subscription channels that will be needed from 2027 onwards…
- Sky Sports – £20
- TNT Sports – £27
- Paramount+ – £10.99*
- Amazon Prime Video – £5.99
- Total: £63.98
*Price yet to be announced for sport
“Another choice for consumers will also be difficult to swallow so expect subscriber float, disengagement and higher volume moves to piracy models.”
On top of this, DAZN showed the Club World Cup over the summer – although that was for free in the end after Fifa took its time to reach an agreement over a lead broadcaster.
SunSport now understands that the latest changes will be worth an estimated £560million per year into the prize pool for the Champions League.
That is up by around 25 per cent and will reach an estimated £2.75billion.
Included in that is an immediate £4.2million bonus up to £20.6million just for qualifying with wins worth a lucrative amount on top.
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The TV rights pot – currently worth £940million domestically – is the real income generator, though.
Fans will see more money leaving their pockets as clubs continue to be rewarded.