Soccer viewers often feel like they are paying more to stream the sport. The breadth of the sport divides different competitions into different platforms. Instead of having one centralized place, soccer fans have to dig into two, three, or even four services just to get all the content they want.
For example, a Manchester United or Liverpool fan needs to subscribe to Paramount+, ESPN+, Peacock, and some sort of TV provider to watch all of their team’s games. That covers the Champions League or the Europa League, the domestic cups and the English Premier League, respectively.
However, a new report indicates that soccer fans in the United States may be more willing to spend a penny to watch their sport.
Parks and Associates, a market research and consulting firm, released data demonstrating the willingness of sports fans to pay more than $20 a month for all games.
More than 60% of soccer fans are in the “high probability” of paying more than $20 per month for all games. This is the highest of the 10 sports included. However, something interesting to note is that the other sports are specific leagues. For example, Parks and Associates used the NHL, NBA, NFL, or MMA. Soccer is just soccer.
Soccer fans pay more to stream the sport
The report mentioned Major League Soccer and its new deal with Apple. MLS and Apple announced the MLS Season Pass, which is $14.99. This falls under the umbrella of including “all games,” which the report specified for the data.
The MLS Season Pass may cost less than the $20 benchmark. However, it does not include any of the European or South American leagues and international competitions. Including the aforementioned services like ESPN+, Paramount+, and Peacock with the MLS Season Pass brings the user comfortably over $30 per month. Also, this does not include a TV subscription to get most Premier League games.
Used to pay more
One way to explain the Parks and Associates data is to say that football fans are simply used to paying more for streaming, and want to. Well, football fans don’t want to pay more, they just want access to more competitions. Consequently, they feel more comfortable paying for it.
There is little competition for the NFL and negligible challenges for the NHL, NBA and MLB. Soccer is different. One person can support Bayern Munich, the other supports Juventus. Those two teams have very different streaming requirements. Soccer is an expensive sport to watch just because of how spread out it is.
Subscription revenue in the US will grow in the next five years
Looking holistically at OTT sports rights in the United States, Parks and Associates expects it to grow. In other words, streaming will become more frequent and natural for many providers, regardless of the sport. MLS and Apple are one indicator, as is Amazon’s purchase of the rights to Thursday Night Football in the NFL.
In 2022, OTT streaming revenue reached $13.1 billion. The estimate for 2027 is for that figure to reach approximately $22.6 billion. That represents a 73% increase in revenue.
If soccer can continue to gain popularity in sport, there is reason to believe so. The general support for soccer will grow and the income will increase with it.
PHOTO: IMAGO / ZUMA Wire
