Premier League+ Explained: How the New Streaming Platform Could Transform Global Football Revenues

For example, the Bundesliga distributed €1.21 billion from domestic marketing to its 18 clubs during the season, which is very similar to the amounts generated by the Premier League. However, the Bundesliga was only able to distribute €217 million to its clubs from international marketing, meaning that Premier League clubs were able to generate approximately twice as much in TV revenue.

But why does the Premier League generate so much more money than all other football leagues? This question is easy to answer. The Premier League was the first football league to understand that local football matches and football clubs can be marketed not only locally, but also internationally. As a result, Premier League clubs were the first to start travelling abroad to interesting markets during the summer break in order to increase the profile of the clubs and, indirectly, the league. The biggest pioneer in internationalisation was Manchester United. Manu launched a full-blown internationalisation campaign in the early 2000s. United targeted Asia as its core market. Every two years, the Red Devils travelled to Asia for summer tours, which began in 2005. They also signed Asian players, such as Park Ji-Sung, which also greatly increased their profile. In addition, they repeatedly had world stars in their ranks, such as David Beckham and Cristiano Ronaldo, which increased their popularity and generated additional revenue through merchandising sales. Football schools were also opened to build lasting loyalty to the clubs among local people, and strategic partnerships were formed, such as a sponsorship agreement with Saudi Telecom Company in 2008. Many other English clubs followed Manchester United’s example, greatly increasing the Premier League’s profile and popularity. This gave the Premier League a huge advantage over other leagues in terms of international marketing. Another minor advantage is language, as English is the global language. La Liga, for example, has advantages in the South American market, where Spanish is predominantly spoken.

What seems like a lot in the Premier League is sometimes extremely little compared to other sports. The four major leagues in the USA are in a league of their own, which is partly due to their strong domestic market, but also to the strong internationalisation of the respective leagues. The NBA, for example, signed contracts with Disney, NBC, Amazon and Prime Video in 2024, which will earn it a total of €76 billion over 11 years (from the 2025/26 to 2035/36 seasons). The NFL signed contracts worth €120 million for its 32 teams for the rights from 2023 to 2033. Both leagues also have significantly more teams, but the teams still receive considerably more money per team. In addition to the strong domestic market, this is mainly due to advancing internationalisation. For example, the leagues even allow regular competition games to be held in other countries, as the NFL has been doing with the London Games since 2007.

Opportunities and Risks of a Premier League-Owned Streaming Platform

In 2024, the Bundesliga also had the idea of raising €1 billion by selling future TV marketing revenues to private equity firms. This money was then to be used to set up its own streaming platform. This did not work out due to various fan protests in German stadiums, but the German Football League (DFL) announced that it would continue to look into streaming as a way of generating additional revenue from TV marketing in the future.

Having its own streaming platform gives the Premier League the opportunity to generate even more revenue. This could be achieved through better value creation, which currently lies partly with media partners such as Sky. In addition, the Premier League can generate additional revenue through premium features or personalised advertising. The topic of advertising could be particularly interesting for the Premier League, but also for advertisers. This is because the Premier League could potentially act as the sole point of contact for all available target markets with a platform. By taking over the entire production chain, the English elite league can market the Premier League brand much better and act completely independently. In addition, it could offer additional services and develop further business areas around the streaming platform, following the American model. The NFL and the NBA, for example, have a merchandising shop offering items from all teams. Fanatics provides some of this, but the Premier League could, for example, offer its own shop tailored to each target market via the platform, which would lead to additional revenue in club merchandising.

However, the many opportunities are also accompanied by many risks. The biggest risk is the potential loss of secure income from the long-standing partnerships that the Premier League maintains. Sky, NBC and TNT pay several billion pounds a year for broadcasting rights, which are therefore considered secure income. If viewing figures are lower, this does not initially affect the Premier League, as they have ongoing contracts in which the sums are secured. In the event of new contract negotiations, the sums would then decrease again later, but with a streaming platform, the Premier League is dependent on having as many users as possible from the outset in order to generate the money that the clubs need to pay for their ongoing business. In addition, the effort involved in setting up an entire platform is very high. It requires its own customer service, payment processing must be in place, and the technical infrastructure for streaming must be guaranteed in every country. Furthermore, growing streaming and TV piracy is a major problem. This is a particular complaint among service providers who work with La Liga. The Premier League could also face this kind of problem, which is why expensive anti-piracy technology is needed. However, the biggest risk remains the acceptance of a Premier League exclusive streaming platform. Fans are already paying a lot of money for expensive subscriptions, and now they have many to choose from. However, platforms such as DAZN also offer several competitions (in Germany, for example, the Champions League, Ligue 1, Serie A and La Liga). The question will be whether fans will then take out a separate subscription just for the Premier League and how much they are willing to pay for it.

Conclusion: What Premier League+ Means for the Future of Football Broadcasting

 The Premier League remains the most innovative football league in the world and is breaking new ground. They are bold enough to try out new business models, and that is exactly what they are doing with their own streaming platform. For now, it remains a trial in Singapore, after which the league will draw conclusions that will determine how to proceed. The trial will then show whether a streaming platform will be rolled out and what impact the results will have on the battle for TV money. However, it is to be expected that the Premier League will be very cautious in its decision to launch a streaming platform, as it currently has a dominant position over all other football leagues and must therefore be careful not to lose this major competitive advantage in its quest for further revenue. We can look forward to seeing how this test turns out, because it will not only be decisive in terms of how much money the respective leagues earn, but also in terms of what offers football fans will receive and at what prices. This will also determine whether platforms such as DAZN or other providers such as Sky will continue to exist. Due to ongoing contracts, things will remain as they are now until at least the 2028/29 season.