LALIGA clubs gathered on Friday, 4th August and the First Division Board approved (18 votes in favour, two abstentions and one vote against) for an additional parameter to be included in the ‘audience recognition’ criteria – that is to say knowledge and awareness of a club among audiences – allowing for a more equitable and fairer distribution of resources generated by the commercialization of the competition’s television broadcasts.
The initiative, which applies initially only to LALIGA EA SPORTS clubs, is based on implementing new and innovative voluntary measures that will enhance the audiovisual experience. It comes in response to demands from LALIGA’s broadcast rights holders for an improved product to raise it to the level of other elite sports competitions. Ultimately, the aim is to increase the value of the competition’s audiovisual rights as much as possible, thus fulfilling LALIGA’s legal responsibility.
A new method of distribution has been approved for two-thirds of the 25% revenue share corresponding to so-called ‘audience recognition,’ independent of season tickets and gate receipts. Half of the two-thirds will be distributed in line with audience share, as has been the case until now; the other half will be distributed in line with the degree of collaboration with these new voluntary initiatives relating to broadcasters’ requests.
The ultimate aim of the measures is to incentivize the improvement of LALIGA’s audiovisual product and in turn generate more income. The level of collaboration will be measured by each club’s audience ratings multiplied by the average audience generated.
This new system only affects the 25% ‘audience recognition’ criteria for revenue distribution. The remaining 75% of revenue will continue to be distributed in accordance with the terms of the Royal Decree and the LALIGA’s General Regulations.
The measures and proposed results are a response to the needs of a constantly evolving market in which it is essential to strengthen links with fanbases that demand new content to better their match experience, something that other major European leagues are already working on.
Broadcasting improvements
Through this incentive system, which allows for a better measurement of ‘audience recognition,’ LALIGA aims to foster greater willingness from clubs to engage in interviews with coaching staff, pre-match footage from inside changing rooms, and greater involvement of players across a host of different broadcast formats.
These exciting incentives complement the variety of new features LALIGA has already unveiled for the 2023/24 season. Fans will see a whole new broadcast product thanks to a redesigned graphics package, offering new perspectives and angles, more detailed information, and a much more immersive viewing experience.
New camera angles in the dugouts, aerial cameras, cinematic cameras in player tunnels and improved visuals all come with a nod to the EA SPORTS FC video game. These, along with many other innovations such as the changes to the distribution model, aim to offer the best possible experience for fans.