EURO 2008 INFO

This amount comes from 800 million euros spent by the channels to broadcast the competition. But the 250 million euros generated by the marketing around the event.

(m24/belga) - The Euro-2008 football, that Austria and Switzerland from 7 to organise June 29, will generate 1.05 billion euros from television rights and marketing for the European Union Football (UEFA), against only 743 million during the previous edition, in Portugal in 2004.

Despite this astronomical amount, the continental European competition is still far from the results of the World Cup 2006 in Germany and its 1.95 billion euros in revenue. As four years ago, the TV rights represent the lion's share. Broadcasters around the world spend 800 million for broadcast on 31 meetings.

 
+40% Of TV rights through mobile telephony

The negotiation market by market, the development of broadcasting in Asia, already amateur competitions European clubs, and the rise of television on mobile phones mainly explain the increase of over 40% of TV rights (560 million euros in 2004).

The marketing rights are not to be outdone: UEFA will receive 250 million euros (against 183 in Portugal) of all sponsors. Besides the 10 official sponsors include domestic partners. In Austria, the four companies chosen each spent 8 million to link their name to the Euro-2008.

 
A speculative bubble?

If these figures are impressive and show a commercial success for UEFA, the Swiss consultant Patrick Cotting questions on a possible "speculative bubble": "The Euro-1996 reported 50 million (euros) of rights TV is 16 times less than in 2008. Yet there is not 16 times more viewers and technical broadcasting is not 16 times better. If UEFA was listed, I begin to sell my actions, "he says.

Indicator concern in his view, television channels are losing money with football. "TF1 is a good example. It has never been able to cover its expenditure despite hearings records for matches of the team of France. This strategy of gaining market share could be abandoned by shareholders," warns Patrick Cotting.

 
An inflation rates driven by competition

His counterpart french Frédéric Bolotny, the Centre for Law and Economics sport Limoges, is more nuanced: "Until 2000, the rights were under-assessed, the evolution is therefore not very surprising. The tendency to the decline remains to be demonstrated. We must not forget the situations of competition between broadcasters in some markets participating in the inflation rate. "

By cons, he joined Patrick Cotting on the revenue risk of sponsorship: "A big ten official sponsors, perhaps many, while the Champions League has only six". A real problem when "the consumer may not remember that 2 or 3 marks the maximum", as highlighted Patrick Cotting.

 
The parasitic maketing

In addition, official sponsors have also difficult to differentiate companies marketing parasite. In Switzerland, as in Austria, brands have focused their campaign on the fans or football in general and not revenue and not the slightest euro UEFA, based in Nyon, near Geneva. "UEFA can not protect these terms," Patrick Cotting.

In addition, several sponsors have complained of lack of visibility offered to them ahead of the competition. "In fact, we have to invest nearly three times the sum paid to UEFA in complementary actions to be really noticed by the consumer," says the Swiss expert. It is expected that these elements exert a downward pressure during the upcoming negotiations for rights to the Euro-2012, Poland and Ukraine.

"In Europe, one is maximum," he says, the issue is whether Asia will offset the losses. UEFA will use his loot in particular to pay 184 million euros in bonuses distributed to participating teams and to finance programmes of assistance in projects of national federations.