Canal+, a major sports broadcaster in France, listed on the London Stock Exchange today (Monday 16 December) following a meeting with the UK government last week.
The company is headquartered in Paris and is historically one of the biggest media stakeholders in the French sports ecosystem. It has previously held direct rights to Ligue 1 top-flight football, but now shows the competition under a sub-licencing deal.
Top 14 rugby union, UEFA Champions League and Europa League football, the English Premier League and Formula One are now Canal+’s flagship sports properties. It is also the French broadcaster of the Professional Fighters League (PFL) MMA promotion, MotoGP and golf’s Ryder Cup and Masters Tournament competitions.
Though it is based in France it is headquartered internationally and nearly two-thirds of its subscribers are outside France. This international presence has apparently influenced its decision to list on the LSE, looking for an exchange ‘where its value could be fully realised by international investors and media sector specialists’, according to HM Treasury.
“It was a pleasure to meet with the Chancellor today to discuss why we believe London is the best location for CANAL+, as a global media and entertainment powerhouse, to list as a publicly traded company,” said Canal+ CEO, Maxime Saada, after he met with Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves, on Friday (13 December).
“We look forward to the start of our journey as a listed company in our own right on Monday. I would like to thank the Chancellor for making us feel so welcome in the UK.”
As stated above, Canal+ has previously been a broadcaster of Ligue 1 football but had a falling out with the Ligue de Football Professionnel (LFP) over the tender to the 2021-2024 football media rights cycle. The rights had been directly offered to Amazon, but Canal+ and fellow broadcaster beIN Sports argued this was anti-competitive.
The firm subsequently opted not to bid for the 2024-2029 rights. French football nearly found itself in a sticky financial situation with no media partners ahead of the 2024/25 season start date, but DAZN and beIN ultimately stepped in with a joint deal. The two later came to an agreement with Canal+, which can show Ligue 1 football to its subscribers.
While the firm has its own ambitions with a UK listing, it is also helping to fulfil some separate ambitions of the country’s government. UK leadership is trying to attract overseas companies and investment, ranging from companies in the creative and entertainment industries like Canal+ to finance firms like Brazilian neobank Nubank.
Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rachel Reeves, said: “Economic growth is my number one mission – and attracting more investment to the UK is key. I’m delighted that CANAL+, a leading international media company, has chosen the UK.
“Their decision is a vote of confidence in the UK’s capital markets, the stability we are delivering and our plan for change.”
