Uefa Aims to Generate Over £4bn Annually from New TV Deals
Europe's top football clubs stand to benefit significantly from streaming rights as Uefa aims to secure over £4 billion annually from its upcoming television deals.
Officials from Uefa are optimistic that the next sale of broadcast rights for the Champions League, Europa League, and Europa Conference League could yield a minimum of €5 billion (£4.3 billion) each year.
The current rights, sold in 2024, are valued at approximately £2.9 billion per year, with new agreements set to take effect in 2027.
The rights will be put out to tender this month, likely requiring a six-year commitment—double the duration of the existing contracts.
Streaming services such as Amazon, Disney, or Netflix may secure the option to broadcast one premier match per round, although the duration of this arrangement within the competition remains uncertain.
Broadcasters will have the opportunity to bid for rights across multiple markets simultaneously, with England, Spain, France, Italy, and Germany currently leading the pack.
At present, Champions League clubs receive nearly 75% of the revenue generated from Uefa's rights sales, while Europa League clubs earn 17% and Conference League teams receive 8%.
In the UK, TNT and Amazon Prime are broadcasting live European games, while BBC Sport holds rights for online highlights and airs a highlights show on BBC One.
The league format, involving 36 clubs across all three competitions, which was introduced last season, will remain unchanged.
During a general assembly of European football clubs in Rome on Wednesday, Uefa President Aleksander Ceferin addressed the attendees without directly referencing future broadcast deals.
Ceferin stated, "Together we are building something unique with ambition, to deliver the most engaging football, the most innovative, and the most accessible to expand our core revenue streams. We aim to inspire new fans to follow our competitions, drive engagement with new audiences, especially in an ever-changing media and streaming rights landscape, and leverage digital platforms to bring the game closer together than ever before. This is how we will keep European football at the very top."