The American national football league (NFL), which kicked off yesterday, has signed two huge long term deals this week.
The one will keep the hugely popular Monday Night Football show on the US cable broadcaster ESPN through to 2021 in a deal reported to be worth US$15.2 billion. The other is a new 10 year $2.3 billion deal with Pepsi. NFL is projecting record revenues of over $9.5 billion this season.
Compared to the NFL numbers, Uefa Champions League revenue looks ridiculous: Broadcast revenue for the 2009/10 season was €837m and commercial revenue was just €260m. Overall just $1.097 billion per season for a league that has a mandate over most popular brands in the world: Real Madrid, Barcelona, Manchester United, AC Milan, FC Bayern Munich, Juventus, Arsenal and more.
That’s poor by UEFA, very poor. Why can’t The Champions League earn €7 billion per season like the NFL?
Maybe the Champions League entertain clubs such as Apoel Nicosia, FC Oţelul Galaţi and FC Viktoria Plzeň each season? Maybe it is because the group stage is predictable and boring?
Maybe it is just because in the NFL is just a far more exiting league than Champions League. It is A league that has 10 or 12 teams (out of 32) that can actually win the lot; It is based on a regular season, which almost every game in it matters and it has a one legged, truly exciting knock out stage.
The NFL is a much better league than the Champions League. It is more interesting and a lot a more profitable. The ECA and UEFA should sit together and think why.
WHAT TO DO NOW?