DAZN keeps its subscribers engaged by preventing them from canceling. The platform sold them a package that included Ligue 1 broadcasts, to which they no longer have the rights today.
DAZN and the LFP recently reached an agreement to terminate the contract that binds them. The British streaming platform never found the right formula to convince football fans to subscribe to watch Ligue 1. It missed its targets by a wide margin and even contributed to pushing viewers towards illegal solutions. In short, it's a fiasco, and while it had committed to broadcasting Ligue 1 for five years, DAZN only lasted a short season.
Now a tricky question arises: what about customers who signed up for a one-year commitment to get a discount on the monthly subscription price? Logically, since Ligue 1 is DAZN's flagship product in France, subscribers should be able to withdraw and terminate their subscription. But the service doesn't see it that way, not for now anyway.
Cancelling your DAZN subscription with a commitment is not possible
As reported by L'Équipe, DAZN categorically refuses to let its remaining subscribers go. Its argument is that discussions are still underway with LFP Media, the commercial subsidiary of the Ligue de Football Professionnel. The latter will likely launch its own channel next season, and DAZN could play the role of producer, distributor, or both. For DAZN, this would be a way to avoid paying heavy penalties for breaking the initial contract.
“DAZN is making every effort to reach an agreement with the LFP as part of its Ligue 1 channel project and wishes to continue its development in France, within a viable economic framework for the success of French football and all its stakeholders. We are currently continuing our discussions with the LFP in this regard. We understand the concerns of our subscribers, whose satisfaction is paramount to us. We will not fail to keep them immediately informed as soon as we have more information to share with them for the 2025-2026 season,” the platform communicated to the sports daily.
But the competition promises to be tough. While obtaining the Ligue 1 rights didn't interest many people last year, the new project is attracting much more attention. It is indeed much less risky, since the issue here is not to acquire broadcasting rights, but to offer the LFP its match production and channel distribution services. Canal+ could return to the negotiating table, as could Amazon, which had rather convincingly taken over the TV rights from MediaPro, before the handover to DAZN, but which threw in the towel due to lack of profitability. Orange could also position itself, taking advantage of its power on internet boxes.
DAZN is playing for time
This uncertainty does not work in favor of DAZN customers who cannot unsubscribe. Ligue 1 has just concluded, and they risk paying for nothing in the coming months if they are prevented from canceling, with no certainty that the French championship will be available again on the platform from next August.
Asked by L'Équipe about the possibility for committed subscribers to cancel if DAZN ultimately does not obtain distribution of the LFP channel, the company dodges the question, which does not indicate anything good. It could try to force users to stay for their commitment period, by claiming that other content is available. Customers could retort that they have subscribed to an offer... that no longer exists. Given the public's disenchantment and the strained relationship between the LFP and DAZN, it seems unlikely that Ligue 1 will return for the 2025/2026 season.
For those who are subscribers but not committed, we explain the steps to cancel your DAZN subscription in this article. If you only subscribed for Ligue 1, there is no reason to continue paying for the service during this almost three-month summer break.
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