Something happened. Was not good. Facebook will not renew the rights for the Copa Libertadores and the Champions League. That means that fans will not be able to watch any game on the Facebook Watch platform since 2022. Several conclusions can be drawn about this news.
The first: soccer as a multiplatform product did not attract an online audience. According to Facebook data, audiences nearly tripled during the Champions League final, which became the most watched soccer game in Facebook’s history, and there was a 48% growth in number of views during the 2020 season of the Copa Libertadores. Statistics that did not appeal to the giant enough to reach into the denim and pay for the following seasons.
Both Conmebol and UEFA were rubbing their hands with the agreements they had reached with Facebook. Once again, broadcast rights were the holy grail that would save teams. But the blue giant’s plans were different. Basically, they did trial and error. They paid to see. Was it worth paying to have live sporting events to power Facebook Watch? The answer is no.
The second conclusion has to do with something denser: data collection. Some international analysts have pointed out that what Facebook did in these few years in which it broadcast live matches was to collect user data to distribute it among interested brands, teams and television channels.
Facebook executive Rob Shaw made an interesting analysis: “If you are an NBA team, you can retarget people in your market, who saw your Facebook broadcast, at a discount to return to the stadium. Or if you are a network like ESPN, you can offer people a sample of your programming live on Facebook and then take them to ESPN +. In this new free business model, content is the beginning of the consumer journey, not the end. “
And the third conclusion goes further. Everything seems to indicate that the great winner of the Facebook experiment with the Libertadores and the Champions League is television. Yes, the old and beloved TV is still the preferred way to watch live games. Beyond the ornate responses, are users willing to watch a two-hour game from their cell phone?
One of the threats of Netflix is live events, be it games of any sport, award ceremonies or concerts. Live events are the only ones that generate more interactions and data collection than new movies or series.
Therefore, it is surprising that Facebook has aborted the experiment of the Copa Libertadores and the Champions League. Could it be that Facebook will end the Facebook Watch experiment? There I leave it stinging.
* The opinions expressed in this text are the sole responsibility of the author and do not represent Pulzo’s editorial position at all.
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