European women’s football leagues continue to be undervalued by media owners, despite the growing popularity of the sport, according to an Ampere Analysis report.
Ampere found that the current rights valuation of European women’s football leagues stands at approximately 0.5% of the value of the men’s leagues.
But rights valuations are likely to increase when the rights are next negotiated given the sport’s popularity with fans and TV audiences.
The Women’s Super League (WSL) has the highest rights value of the five largest domestic European leagues. Its new deal stands at £13m per season, 0.8% of the newest English Premier League deal, worth £1.6bn per season.
In France, the Première Ligue is reported to be worth €1.3m per season, just 0.3% of the €479m value of the men’s Ligue 1 rights.
However, the size of the domestic fanbase for each of the women’s leagues averages at a much larger value, at 9% of the size of the men’s league fanbase.
Part of the gap in rights values is because supporters of the men’s leagues are typically more engaged with the coverage of the leagues. A higher number of men's football fans say they watch all or most of the competition.
Similarly, a higher proportion of supporters are willing to pay to watch men’s leagues than women’s. In each of the five markets, the men’s football league is the top competition that followers say they will pay for. Between 19% and 41% of sports fans are willing to pay for the men's event, versus only 1% to 3% for the women’s leagues.
However, the willing-to-pay fanbase for women’s leagues is still 3-6% the size of that for the men’s leagues. This is a higher proportion than the gap in rights valuations suggests. Therefore, while media rights values for women’s leagues are starting from a lower point, Ampere believes they have an opportunity to grow further.
Danni Moore, Senior Analyst at Ampere Analysis said: “Ampere’s analysis indicates that the recent scaling of women's fan bases should drive upside for rights owners in the next round of negotiations. Growing audiences and increasing willingness to pay for access among supporters are likely to support increased deal values in the future, closing the gap a little between the men's and women's games. The lack of historic precedent, however, means that women's competitions will have to work hard to prove this value to prospective rights buyers.”
You are not signed in
Only registered users can comment on this article.
Digital switch-off prospect nullifies Arqiva’s value
Arqiva’s main shareholder has admitted that its holding of the transmission company might be worth nothing.
Warner Bros Discovery mulls re-opening sales talks with Paramount
Warner Bros Discovery is considering reopening sale talks with Paramount Skydance Corp, according to a Bloomberg report.
.jpg)
BBC unveils fresh cost-cutting drive
The BBC is set to make cuts of around 10% of its costs in the face of "substantial financial pressures" over the next three years.
.jpg)
Report warns of unsustainable financial pressure for UK’s film and TV workforce
A survey examining the financial health of workers in the UK’s film, TV, and cinema industry has reported that a large proportion of the workforce is under severe and escalating financial pressure and that many are being “forced to leave” due to unsustainable circumstances.
.jpg)
BSC Expo: “AI is a real b*****d to work with”
The annual British Society of Cinematographers (BSC) Expo returned to the Evolution Centre in Battersea, London, this weekend, attracting key professionals across the production industry with its packed seminar schedule and frank discussions on the future of the film industry.
