Abstract
While the French football is making one euro, the English is making about 2.50. This fact underlines the difference in the economic efficiency between the French and the English competition. In the season of 2006/2007, the French professional league made 1.2 billion euros in terms of income. Football is the first business sport in France much before tennis. In this document, we are going to answer the following question: How is the French football business positioned when compared to its main competitors? In the first part, we will describe the business model of football clubs in France. In the second part, we will speak about the lack of diversification of French clubs and finally we will focus on the deregulation in the market. Between 1998 and 2005, the incomes of TV rights got multiplied by six times. More than ever, the French football is dependent on an actor: the TV channel Canal, which spent 600 million euros to buy the same. The TV rights represent 57% of its general incomes. In 2008, professionals had a happy surprise: Orange, which presented new challenges on TV, bought a part of its rights for 150 million euros.
