2018 was a unique year for sports stakeholders in France. Among the many stories that marked the year that has just ended, let’s take a look back at six highlights that will undoubtedly impact the development of French sports over the coming years.
February 2018: Winter Olympics, record matched for the French delegation
The year started off at full speed with a historic medal record for the French team at PyeongChang (South Korea). With 15 medals won, the French delegation matched its performance from Sochi four years earlier. A good result despite the ambitious goal of reaching 20 medals. The French team can still take pride in bringing home 5 gold medals, a first as the delegation generally caps at four in its best campaigns. At the heart of these Olympiads, one man, Martin Fourcade, who won three gold medals, including one collectively. One woman as well, skier Perrine Laffont, who became the first French athlete to win gold in 2018. At just 19 years old, the young Pyrenean brought enormous attention to her discipline and region and remains one of the success stories that help the Winter Olympics gain more recognition from the general public. Overall, nearly 41.5 million French people followed the Olympic fortnight on France Tรฉlรฉvisions, with significant success among the young, with 57% of 4-14-year-olds, 43% of 15-24-year-olds, and even 62% of 25-34-year-olds. These are satisfying figures considering the unfavorable 8-hour time difference. On digital platforms, France Tรฉlรฉvisions announced nearly 15 million visits to its website and apps and approximately 64 million videos viewed on social media. The sports results and enthusiasm should encourage winter sports stakeholders to continue their efforts ahead of the Beijing 2022 Winter Olympics.
May 2018: Ligue 1 reaches the billion mark
Unveiled in May by the Ligue de Football Professionnel, the distribution of television rights for the French championship for the 2020-2024 period was full of surprises. While the Spanish agency MediaPro made a sensational entry by acquiring three packages for around 780 million euros per year, Canal+ found itself sidelined despite being the historic broadcaster of French football. This marked the end of an era for the French broadcaster, which will not air any matches starting in 2020. By adding the packages awarded to BeIN Sports and Free, the LFP secured a total of 1.153 billion euros annually starting in 2020. This commercial success confirms the good health of French football and will allow clubs to continue their development in the coming years.
July 2018: France on top of the world thanks to football
Every four years, the FIFA World Cup resurfaces and finds a place in homes, businesses, bars, offices, and schools, reminding everyone that football is indeed the number one sport in France and on the planet. It’s simple; no other entertainment impacts the world like the World Cup. In France alone, 63% of media coverage from June 14 to July 15 was dedicated to the World Cup, according to Kantar. Omnicom estimates that 36.5 million French people watched the final in fan zones or on their televisions. Overall, the World Cup generated over 71 million mentions on the web and social media. While analysts have shown that this second star will have minimal direct impact on the French economy, this victory is nonetheless the success of many stakeholders involved in the sport. In a market where football holds such an important place, this visibility bodes well for the entities that contributed to this achievement, whether closely or remotely. Official partners, brands, sports marketing agencies, media, and businesses all experienced the excitement of the Blues during the famous summer of 2018.
September 2018: No “yellow vests,” but French sport is in turmoil
Much like the protests currently stirring the country, 2018 was marked by the consternation of French sports stakeholders following the government’s budget cut announcements in September. This episode paradoxically allowed for a certain unity among sports organizations, gathered under a single voice through the hashtag #LeSportCompte. Volunteers, executives, coaches, athletes, and federations all joined the movement to voice the demands of a sector struggling for recognition, even as Paris 2024 loomed large in everyone’s mind. At the heart of this discontent, many clubs decided not to play any matches for one or several weekends to make their voices heard. Roxana Maracineanu, who replaced Laura Flessel as Minister of Sports, minimized the damage, though she couldn’t prevent an overall budget cut for 2019 but secured government guarantees for high-level sports and the protection of jobs for nearly 1,600 technical and sports advisors (CTS). This episode at least allowed the sports world to come together and appreciate a seldom-seen sense of unity. Likewise, let’s hope that this government threat has made all parties more aware of the need for sports, whether elite or amateur, to organize and generate funding avenues beyond public subsidies.
September-October 2018: Ryder Cup, a significant first for France
With numerous sporting events being organized on French soil in the coming years, French institutions are keen to showcase their expertise to the rest of the world. This first Ryder Cup in France was the perfect event to highlight the versatility of our organizations, always with an eye towards the 2024 deadlines. Even though the economic returns do not fill French coffers (most revenues go to Ryder Cup Europe), this 42nd edition and Tiger Woods’ participation on the greens of Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines put a spotlight on the discipline. This is the main challenge for the French Golf Federation, fully satisfied with the media coverage that showed the true face of the sport to the general public and private partners. More than 2.2 million viewers followed the competition on Canal+, despite the absence of a public broadcaster, and about 280,000 people, 40% of whom were French, were able to attend the event live at the Golf National. These figures will enable the FFGolf to plan for future international events and continue its seduction operation in France with numerous activities, enabling everyone to discover golf.
2018: eSports confirms its appeal
It would be an oversight to say that 2018 was the year of eSports in France, as the discipline promises bright days ahead, but it’s clear that many sports business stakeholders have joined the momentum. In 2018, the FDJ created its platform dedicated to eSports, the city of Paris launched an incubator specializing in electronic competitions, Team Vitality signed a historic partnership with INSEP, eSports debuted at Roland Garros with BNP Paribas, and the FFF finally launched its eSports team. With so much involvement from the key players in French sports, eSports is confirming its allure to brands. Adidas, EDF, SNCF, Coca-Cola, Orange, KFCโmost traditional sponsors in the French sports landscape have a foot, if not both, in eSports. In September 2018, the association representing major eSports stakeholders in France indicated that the country had more than 5 million eSports consumers, with 2 million active participants. Among these, 51% are between 14 and 34 years old.
Michael Tapiro
