DAZN, the sports streaming service, has rolled out an enticing promotion for football fans in France: a three-month subscription to watch Ligue 1 matches with the purchase of a McDonald's meal. This offer comes on the heels of a tumultuous first six months in their four-year broadcasting deal with the Ligue de Football Professionnel (LFP), the governing body for French football.
As of March 19, 2025, the first 120,000 customers who order from a special Ligue 1 menu available on McDo+, France's McDonald's delivery app, will receive an access code that grants them the opportunity to watch “Ligue 1 matches for the rest of the season.” This promotion is a strategic effort by DAZN to boost subscriber numbers in what has proven to be a struggling launch for their Ligue 1 streaming service.
The deal costs €14.15 (approximately £11.87 or $15.39), a sharp contrast to DAZN's standard monthly subscription fee of €39.99. In addition, fans have the option to watch individual matches for €14.99 each, with a reduced price of €10 for those under the age of 26.
Despite these efforts, DAZN’s Ligue 1 deal has seen a disheartening uptake of only 400,000 subscribers to date, falling significantly short of the company's original target of 1.5 million subscribers for the inaugural season, as no one predicted such dramatic numbers back in August 2024 when the deal was first announced. According to Sam Joseph from The Athletic, "DAZN's Ligue 1 deal has reportedly seen it only draw in 400,000 subscribers, far less than its target of 1.5 million for the inaugural season of the deal."
Compounding the challenges, Ligue 1 has been embroiled in a crisis regarding its broadcast rights over recent years. In October 2023, the LFP was forced to scrap a planned auction aimed at securing €1 billion for broadcast rights as no proposals met the desired asking price. This situation left the league without a broadcasting arrangement for the 2024-25 season until the agreement with DAZN was officially finalized.
Under the current deal, DAZN is set to pay €400 million per year for the rights to air eight of the nine Ligue 1 fixtures over the weekend. Meanwhile, the remaining match is to be broadcast by Qatar's beIN Sports, which has agreed to pay the LFP €100 million annually. However, these figures represent over a 10% decrease compared to the previous broadcasting agreements held with Amazon Prime and Canal+ over the last three seasons.
Moreover, the complications deepened for DAZN when it was reported in February 2025 that the company had only sent half of a €70 million installment due to the LFP, placing the remaining amount into an escrow account. DAZN cited a lack of support from the league to combat digital piracy in France as the reason for this financial hesitation. In reaction, the LFP threatened legal action, with Joseph stating, "In response, the LFP announced its intention to take legal action."
Fortunately for fans and stakeholders alike, both DAZN and the LFP reached a resolution, with the LFP confirming on February 28 that DAZN had settled outstanding payments and committed to ongoing discussions about resolving difficulties that had surfaced during the agreement's early stages. The confirmation came amidst ongoing concerns that DAZN was struggling to establish itself firmly within the competitive landscape of sports broadcasting in France.
The precarious nature of DAZN's arrangement is underscored by the presence of a break clause, allowing the streaming service to withdraw from the contract if subscriber targets are not met at the end of the current season. This move places added pressure on both DAZN and the LFP as they work to entice more customers.
With the Ligue 1 subscription promotion through McDonald's, DAZN hopes to not only raise its subscriber base but also reinforce its presence in a market where its competitors are proving to be formidable. Fans are encouraged to take advantage of this promotion by April 30, 2025, and enjoy the excitement of Ligue 1 football while it stirs a renewed hope for the broadcaster’s future.
As the situation develops, all eyes will be on DAZN to see if these promotional strategies can effectively draw in football fans, ultimately making the streaming service a household name in France's football-saturated market. The next few months will be crucial as DAZN navigates this rocky road while continuing to promote Ligue 1 as a top-tier football league that deserves attention and viewership.
