BeIN Sports
beIN Sports is a Qatari multinational network of sports channels owned and operated by the media group beIN. The network has played a major role in the increased commercialization of Qatari sports. Its chairman is Nasser Al-Khelaifi, and its CEO is Yousef Obaidly.
beIN Sports is the dominant television sports channel in the MENA region. It also operates channels in France, United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand, Turkey, Hong Kong, Singapore, Brunei, Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines and Thailand.
History
Early career
entered the European television rights market in June 2011 when it purchased a package of live French football Ligue 1 matches from 2012 to 2016 for €90 million a year. The deal makes them joint broadcasters of domestic top-flight football in France alongside long-term rights holders Canal+. The broadcaster also acquired the pay-TV rights to the UEFA Champions League, Europa League from 2012 to 2015, Euro 2012 and Euro 2016 in France. France was targeted as Al Jazeera's first entry into Europe due to the fact that there were no dedicated sports channels, unlike in the United Kingdom.The name "beIN Sports" was first revealed in early 2012. According to Nasser Al-Khelaifi, the director of Al Jazeera Sports, the name "symbolises the mind of two channels aiming at bringing live and exclusive broadcasting of the biggest events." Former Canal+ executive Charles Bietry was hired by Al Jazeera to launch the channels. The channels were made available on all cable and IPTV providers and select satellite providers. CanalSat – owned by Canal+ Group – has declined to carry the channels as of March 2012. beIN Sports was officially launched on June 1, 2012, in time to broadcast Euro 2012. beIN Sports 2 commenced on July 27, 2012, in time to broadcast the French Ligue 2 season, and before the start of the 2012–13 Ligue 1 season. In June 2015, it was announced that Nasser Al-Khelaifi had plans to create the beIN Sports channel on TV operators to cable in Brazil.
beIN Sports Spain officially began broadcasting on 1 July 2015, the date on which Gol Televisión ceased broadcasting all football games, which during the summer were in place under the slogan "Change the game", "Cambia el juego" in Spanish. Thanks to an alliance between Al Jazeera and Mediapro, beIN Sports Spain offers UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, UEFA Super Cup, Premier League, Serie A, Primeira Liga, Jupiler Pro League, Ligue 1, DFB Pokal, Coupe de la Ligue, KNVB Beker, Johan Cruijff Shield, Copa de Brasil, CONCACAF Gold Cup, Copa Libertadores and Copa Sudamericana. beIN Sports Spain can be viewed over the Internet, smart TV, PC, laptops, tablets, Smartphones, PS3/PS4, Chromecast, TV Operators and online platforms. On Wednesday August 19, due to the start of the playoffs of the UEFA Champions League, beIN Sports begins to emit beIN Sports MAX to broadcast all matches of the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League.
beIN Sports offers customers Gol Televisión lost up to 30 June 2015 an exclusive promotion to watch beIN Sports through beIN Sports CONNECT, and through the app "TotalChannel". It also offers channels like FOX, AXN, TNT, and the best entertainment channels in HD for €5/month for two months, then from the third month onwards €9.99/month. beIN Sports developed a channel licensed for bars in Spain called "beIN Sports BAR". The channel stopped transmission on 9 August 2018.
For the 2016–2017 season and onwards, beIN Sports Spain has the television rights to La Liga and Copa del Rey.
In 2015, beIN Sports expanded its global footprint by acquiring Digiturk, a Turkish-pay-TV platform, which added millions of subscribers to its audience. This move positioned the network as a leader in both European and Asian markets. By 2024, beIN Sports achieved a major milestone, attracting over 1.2 billion views for its coverage of the UEFA Euro 2024 tournament, setting a new standard for sports broadcasting globally. The network also embraced digital innovation, offering subscribers access to live and on-demand content through the beIN CONNECT platform, thus enhancing its accessibility and user engagement.
On November 1, 2017, beIN Sports created an Olympic Channel in the Middle East and North Africa region.
beIN Sports was firstly launched in Singapore through Starhub TV Channel 213 on 19 April 2016. beIN Sports was briefly launched on Singtel TV Channel 109 from 6 August 2019 to 2 October 2021. The latter was then returned on 11 March 2022 due to the closure for Fox Sports Asia. beIN Sports 1 though 3 for Singtel TV are now located on Channel 126, 127 and 128 respectively.
beIN Sports launched on Malaysia Astro Channel 837 on 1 August 2016 before the channel was relocated to Channel 818 on 1 August 2019 and then to Channel 820 on 17 October 2024. The channel was also launched on Unifi TV on 1 May 2022.
beIN Sports MAX, which mostly aired UEFA Champions and Europa League, launched on Singtel TV on Channel 110 on 19 October 2018. It also launched on Astro on Channel 841 on 4 December 2018 before it was relocate to Channel 819 on 1 August 2019. On 7 January 2022, beIN Sports Max was rebranded to beIN Sports 3 in Malaysia and Singapore.
In France, where beIN Sports was launched for the first time, it holds the rights to broadcast major football tournaments, including Ligue 1, La Liga, Serie A, Bundesliga and the European Football Championship. Along with Canal+, beIN Sports also holds the rights to broadcast all the Champions League matches from 2021 to 2024.
In the United States and Canada, beIN Sports holds the rights to broadcast La Liga, Ligue 1, CONMEBOL World Cup Qualifiers, Copa Libertadores and Football League Championship matches and Real Madrid TV. It launched two channels in the United States, in August 2012, followed by a full channel in Canada, on 31 January 2014.
In Indonesia, beIN Sports holds the rights to broadcast La Liga, Ligue 1, Serie A, Süper Lig, A-League, FFA Cup, CAF World Cup Qualifiers, Major League Soccer, and more. In Malaysia, beIN Sports offers comprehensive coverage of European Football Leagues including La Liga, Ligue 1 and more.
In Hong Kong, beIN Sports holds the rights to broadcast Serie A, Ligue 1, Major League Soccer, A-League, FFA Cup, UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League and more.
In Thailand, beIN Sports holds the rights to broadcast La Liga, Serie A, Ligue 1, Bundesliga, MLS, Süper Lig, A-League, FFA Cup, UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League and more.
In Australia, the channel was launched in late November 2014, following the acquisition of Setanta Sports Australia which was rebranded as beIN Sports. beIN Sports Australia holds the rights to broadcast UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, EFL Cup, La Liga, Serie A, Ligue 1, Bundesliga, MLS, Copa Libertadores and RBS Six Nations. On 14 March 2016, beIN Sports Australia expanded from one to three channels, all in HD, and as of 15 May 2016 has been made available to all Foxtel sport pack subscribers, rather than the original add-on cost for a single SD channel. Fetch subscribers still only have access to beIN Sports 1, which is an add-on cost each month.
beIN Connect, also known as beIN Sports Connect, is a subsidiary over-the-top content service started in 2014. It allows users to watch live and on-demand video content from a Mac, Windows PC, mobile phone, Xbox 360, Xbox One, PlayStation 3 or PlayStation 4 via a broadband or Wi-Fi internet connection. On-demand content comprises sports highlights, movies, and TV shows. beIN CONNECT is available as a paid service in France, Spain, United States, Canada, Turkey, Asia-Pacific and the MENA region.
Programming
Football
FIFA World Cup
From 2014 to 2017, beIN Sports held the rights to broadcast the 2014 FIFA World Cup. In 2018, beIN Sports broadcast the 2018 FIFA World Cup. On 23 February 2020, beIN Sports announced to broadcast special shows and dedicated programs for 1000 days until the 2022 FIFA World Cup. To be broadcast from February 25 on its free-to-air and HD1 channel, the programs were supposed to include historic matches, highlights from the international best players, history of Qatari football and special clips of the day Qatar won the World Cup bid.UEFA Euro
From 2012 to 2015, the network held the rights to broadcast all UEFA Euro 2012. From 2016 to 2021, beIN Sports broadcast Euro 2016 matches on the French pay-TV platform while TF1 and M6 have the free-to-air rights to select matches.Champions League
On November 23, 2019, Canal+, beIN Sports, Fox Sports, TVE, Antena 4 and Sports 2 won the rights to broadcast Champions League matches On France, Spain, Uk, Canada and Latin America between 2021 and 2024.Ligue 1
In France, beIN Sports holds one of five rights packages for Ligue 1 from 2012 to 2016 – the package consisting of Friday night and Sunday evening matches. The other four packages are held by Canal+. It also shows Ligue 2 matches. For the UEFA Champions League, it has the rights to broadcast all matches except the 13 weekly first-choice picks from 2012. It also owns the rights to all UEFA Europa League matches including the final.On France, Spain, Russian and United States beIN Sports and Canal+ also share the rights to Serie A and Bundesliga matches. It also airs FA Cup, Football League Championship, La Liga, Argentine Primera División and Brasileirao. In the United States, the network holds the rights package for Ligue 1, La Liga, FIFA World Cup qualification rounds in the Americas, except for home matches by Mexico and the United States. In April 2020, beIN Sports announced that it will broadcast a month-long online football gaming tournament organized by Paris Saint-Germain to entertain people stuck at home, due to Coronavirus. On 13 February 2021, beIN Sports secured exclusive domestic broadcast rights from Canal+ for the remaining matches of Ligue 2's 2020/21 season. BeIN already had the rights to broadcast two live matches per match week under its existing €30 million per season deal with the French Professional Football League for the 2020-24 cycle. With this sublicensing deal, beIN can air the remaining eight live matches per week until the end of 2020-21 season.