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Summary of our market study
The global sports press market is moving towards digitization. Traditional paper formats are losing ground to digital alternatives. This transformation has been accelerated by the Covid-19 pandemic, which has severely affected sales and advertising revenues for sports press titles.
The French sports press market represents a small niche within the overall press industry, with 0.77% of paid circulation. By 2022, paid circulation is expected to be around 18 million copies. It was 30 million in 2012.
The online presence of sports press titles is beginning to compensate for the decline in traditional press revenues. Online sports press circulation is set to rise by 33% between 2019 and 2022.
Dynamics of the sports press market in France
By 2022, between 15 and 20 million copies of the sports press were in paid circulation.
The number of users who pay for both print and digital access is marginal.
Almost all French people read the press in one form or another every month, and over 80% of them read at least one digital article a month.
Daily sports news is provided by titles such as L'Équipe, while specialist magazines such as So Foot, Vélo Magazine and Tennis Magazine offer periodic publications for specific sporting interests. Prices for these niche publications vary, with annual subscriptions ranging from around 35 to 67 euros.
The main players in the French sports press market
- Amaury Media Group: includes the well-known sports daily L'Équipe, France Football, Golf Magazine and Vélo Magazine, each dedicated to a specific sport and audience.
- Groupe La Dépêche - Midi Olympique SAS: distributes rugby news through Midi Olympique
- SO Press: So Foot magazine.
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Summary and extracts
1 Market overview
1.1 Overview of the sports press market
The sports press includes titles dealing with sports and sports news. Sports press titles can be found in both the magazine and newspaper segments, with a wide variety of formats (newspaper or magazine) and publication frequencies: daily, weekly or monthly. The sports press does not include the automotive and motorcycle press.
The global press market is very continent-specific. The paper format is very popular in China and India, two giants in terms of audience. However, in Europe and North America, the paper format is gradually losing ground to digital.
In France, the sports press is a sub-segment of the press market. In fact, paid circulation in France for the sports press represents 0.77% of paid circulation for all mainstream press. Nonetheless, this niche has a number of special features that make it particularly interesting in today's changing press sector.
Indeed, following the trend in the magazine market (for which a Businesscootstudy is available here), the sports press is experiencing a decline in physical sales. Paid circulation (number of sales), up 61.5% between 2021 and 2022 , conceals the reality of a sector that has struggled to recover from the pandemic, and is still reporting 22% fewer sales than in 2019. Publishers' advertising revenues are also in decline, and the transition to digital is generating losses from advertisers who are not yet convinced by the new formats. However, revenues from online presence can offset the decline in revenues from traditional press formats.
We can also observe that players in the sports press market are engaged in a strategy of refocusing on their core business, as illustrated by the sale of Le Parisien to LVMH by the Amaur group. The Amaury group's sale of Le Parisien to LVMH is a case in point, but they are also developing their digital offering, and specializing their product range to meet a highly diverse demand.
What's more, despite the decline in print circulation, the French continue to be drawn to sporting activities and newspapers, while the market is regularly renewed by the emergence of new practices and international events.
1.2 The global press market
The World Association of News Publishers is a non-governmental organization that defends the interests of the press worldwide. Each year, this institution produces a report on trends in the sector. In the ****/**** edition, it reports on key figures and trends in the global newspaper market, with an estimate for ****:
*** million ...
1.3 The French sports press and sports news market
The sports press market in France
Each year, the Alliance pour les Chiffres de la Presse et des Médias (***). This report provides an overview of the different press segments in France. To take a closer look at the sports press segment, we'll concentrate on the "Sports and sports news press" ...
1.4 Declining advertising revenues for the French press
Find out more about this section in the Businesscoot study focusing on the magazine press in France - available immediately here -
Advertising revenues for the press as a whole (***) fell by **.*% in ****, to just *.*** billion euros and **,*** advertisers.
press advertising revenues France, Q***** - Q* ****, in millions of euros Source: ****
1.5 The transition to online sports press consumption is underway
According to theACPM, in ****, the French press will record more than *** million online visits per day.
The digital consumer press
The structural trend has been confirmed in recent years: taking into account the Covid period, the share of online press consumption will rise sharply from ****, an increase already begun in ****.
Visits ...
1.6 Pandemic: global sport at a standstill has taken its toll on sports press publishers
The covid-** crisis saw the stoppage and cancellation of sports competitions eagerly awaited by the public. The sports sector has suffered greatly from the crisis, and so has the sports press. A francetvinfo.fr article published on May **, **** reports on the measures taken by the sector to cope with the news ...
2 Demand analysis
2.1 Traditional press consumption in France
The French and the press
Each year, the ACPM publishes its survey program: La Preuve édition ****. The study reports various data on the sector, such as trends in the number of French people who claim to read the press each month.
growth in the number of readers France, ****-****, in millions ...
2.2 Digital press consumption: more than a trend, a transformation
Reading the digital press is a new consumer habit that is no longer in doubt. Digital formats are gradually taking on a more important role in people's lifestyles, and the press must see this as an opportunity to evolve, since the demand for information is present on these media.
What is ...
2.3 Most-read sports publications
In its **** Observatory, the ACPM reveals the rankings of the leading sports press titles in terms of paid circulation.
Highest circulation of sports press titles France, ****, French paid circulation per issue Source: ****
L'Équipe dominates the ranking, far ahead of the other brand of the same group (***), France Football. This group ...
2.4 Sports press readers
To draw up a profile of the sports press reader, it's interesting to look at the details of L'Équipe's audience as reported by the ACPM. As the leading press medium in the sports segment, its customer panel is the most diversified and representative of the sports press target group.
The ...
2.5 Sports trends in France
The French and the practice of sport
The Institut National de la Jeunesse et de l'Éducation Populaire (***) plays a central role in drawing up annual barometers on youth and sport. It regularly publishes sports barometers in partnership with Crédoc, with a specific focus. In its Baromètre national des ...
3 Market structure
3.1 Focus on newspaper printing in France
Newspaper printing sales
The sports press represents only a tiny share (***).
newspaper printing sales trend France, ****-****, in millions of euros Source: ****
Since ****, the market has entered a phase of decline, with newspaper printing sales also undermined by the transition to digital. As a result, the upstream end of the sports ...
3.2 Sports press publishers in difficulty
Overview of the publishing sector in France
In the Insee nomenclature, sports press publishers can be registered under two distinct naf codes, depending on whether they are positioned as newspapers or magazines.
**.**Z: newspaper publishing ; **.**Z: magazine and periodical publishing.
The ACOSS database (***) provides information on changes in the number ...
3.3 Specialized distribution, physical and digital subscriptions: sports press distribution
Sports press circulation
The ACPM's **** observatory reports the breakdown of French paid circulation by distribution channel in ****.
Distribution of sports press DFP by distribution channel France, ****, in % of paid circulation Source: ****
Individual sales account for ** % of paid circulation. This phenomenon is explained by the fact that the sports press is dependent ...
4 Offer analysis
4.1 A diverse offering to meet enthusiast demand
The range of sports newspapers and magazines is highly specialized: L'Équipe is the only newspaper to cover all sports news. The other titles focus on a specific sport, making the diverse offering all the more specialized. This means there's something for every reader profile. The market's offering is therefore characterized ...
4.2 Variable prices
Source: ****
On the consumer side, prices vary according to the type of distribution (***).
4.3 Competition from 100% online offerings
The market is suffering from competition from players already present online, while it is only just beginning its transition. The advantage is that, unlike news titles, its more passion-based format and publication rhythm should enable it to retain a certain value as a physical object. However, reader demand for digital formats ...
5 Regulations
5.1 General regulations
Regulation of press distributors
Press distribution is governed by law **-*** of April *, **** (***). This law gives press publishers considerable decision-making power. They alone decide on the creation of sales outlets and determine the quantities delivered, the dates on which unsold copies are recalled and the remuneration of distributors.
Since January *, ****, a ...
6 Positioning the players
6.1 Segmentation
Market-leading titles :
L'Équipe(***) France Football(***) Midi Olympique SO Foot Vélo Magazine(***)
Segmentation reminder
- L’Equipe
- France Football (L'Equipe) 1
- Midi-Olympique
- So Foot
- Vélo Magazine (Amaury media)
- Le 10 Sport
- But !
- Eurosport
- Foot Mercato (Adversport regie)
- Sport Orange (Groupe Orange)
- Télégramme Groupe
List of charts presented in this market study
- Average daily press circulation by format
- Total press distribution sales
- Paid circulation trends for the sports press and sports news
- Press advertising revenues
- Readership trends
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Latest news
L'Equipe appoints former Prisma Media executive as CEO - 13/03/2024
- L'Equipe is a multimedia group with considerable development in various sectors.
- 90.000 digital subscribers.
- Circulation of the L'Equipe title increased by 2.3% in 2023, with an average of 220,000 copies.
- The L'Equipe group employs around 600 people, half of whom are journalists.
Laurent Prud'homme leaves the group, Aurore Amaury - 17/11/2023
- Laurent Prud'homme, General Manager of the L'Équipe group, is set to step down from his post
- Laurent Prud'homme spent three years at the helm of L'Équipe Aurore Amaury, President of Groupe L'Équipe, will take over as interim CEO; she is also co-CEO of Groupe Amaury
- The L'Équipe group comprises several L'Équipe brand media, including France Football, Vélo Magazine, and the organization of events such as the "Ballon d'or", the "Vélo d'or", and "Demain le Sport".
- Jean-Étienne Amaury, Aurore Amaury's brother, runs ASO, organizer of almost 90 sporting events
- In May 2020, Aurore and Jean-Étienne Amaury took over the reins of the family group founded by their grandfather Emilien Amaury in 1944.
- It was then run by their father, Philippe Amaury, until his death in 2006.
- They are the third generation to preside over the company's destiny.
Change at the head of the L'Equipe Group - 17/11/2023
- Laurent Prud'homme was head of L'Equipe for less than three years.
- Aurore Amaury becomes interim managing director of L'Equipe.
- Groupe Amaury is mainly divided into two divisions: media, of which L'Equipe is a part, and ASO, which organizes major sporting events.
- The Canal+ Sport offer used to bring L'Equipe 200,000 subscribers, which has drastically dwindled to around 150,000 with the end of the inclusion of L'Equipe's digital content.
- L'Equipe Group's strategy is based on four pillars: the newspaper, television, social networks and the digital platform.
- Diversification revenues account for around 13% of L'Equipe Group's sales.
- Groupe L'Equipe employs around 600 people, half of whom are journalists.
- By 2021, the group had operating income of 4.1 million euros, rising to 6.4 million euros by 2022.
L'Équipe becomes the new broadcaster of the Dakar Rally - 10/11/2023
- L'Équipe now broadcasts the Dakar Rally
- The Dakar Rally is a 5000-kilometre loop
- The Dakar Rally will be covered by a dozen people on the ground and around twenty from Paris
- This will be L'Équipe's biggest financial investment in 2024
- TV rights for the rally have been acquired for several years
- 850 participants
- More than three hours of live coverage per day will be devoted to the competition on the channel
- The L'Équipe channel's audience has grown by 43% in five years, from 1.2% to 1.7%
- L'Équipe lost 15 to 20 million euros a year for several years, but returned to the black in 2021
- By 2023, the channel hopes to break even
- l'Équipe broadcasts 15 of the 28 Olympic sports.
Midi Olympique benefits from the Rugby World Cup - 03/11/2023
- The "Midi Olympique" media outlet recorded a 14% and 22% increase in circulation for its respective publications between the beginning of September and the elimination of the French national team.
- The average number of broadcasts is 41,600 and 21,400 for the 2022-2023 season.
- The number of subscribers (mostly digital) has risen by 30% since the end of July, to over 20,000.
- The World Cup accounted for 1.7 million euros in advertising revenues between July and October.
- Commercial revenues rose by around 30% during the World Cup.
- The medium has been profitable in recent years, with the exception of 2020, a year marked by Covid.
The L'Equipe group, ready for an exceptional year - 01/09/2023
- Series of sporting events organized in France, the Rugby World Cup, the 2024 Paralympic Games, the Euro soccer tournament, the Tour de France and the Paris Olympics.
- 150.000 digital subscribers.
- By 2022, the L'Équipe group has achieved positive operating income of €6.4 million
- The group creates four content pillars:
- the newspaper
- television
- social networks and their digital platform.
- Newspaper sales remained stable in 2022, at around 215,000 copies, according to ACPM.
- The L'Équipe group has over a million subscribers on TikTok and almost a million on YouTube.
- The group's digital platform has around 200 million monthly visits
- The group's revenues are divided into three equivalent sources:
- television advertising (one third)
- newspaper sales and advertising (one third)
- subscriptions and diversification (one third).
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