GENEVA (AP) — UEFA and top European soccer clubs are set to drop the Swiss agency that has sold Champions League rights since 1992 and replace it with the U.S. firm of Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross.
New York-based Relevent Sports has been given exclusive negotiating rights “over the global commercial rights to the UEFA men’s club competitions for the period 2027-2033,” UEFA said Tuesday, announcing the decision of its commercial joint venture with the European Club Association.
UEFA men’s club competitions — including the Champions League, Europa League, Conference League and Super Cup — have earned gross commercial revenue of at least 4.4 billion euros ($4.54 billion) for each season through 2027, almost entirely sold by established agency partner TEAM Marketing.
The 36 Champions League teams this season will share about 2.5 billion euros ($2.6 billion) in prize money from UEFA, and influential officials from those clubs pushed for the move from TEAM toward a fresh approach by Relevent.
Relevent’s first Champions League deal with UEFA was struck in 2022 during the company's long-standing legal action against FIFA to try to stage national league games from Europe in the U.S. That case was settled last April and weeks later FIFA said it would review rules blocking so-called “out-of-territory” games.
The first deal with UEFA let Relevent market just the United States rights for three Champions League seasons through 2027, in the new format with extra games.
That American deal cut into the global marketing of the marquee club competition by TEAM Marketing in Switzerland since the traditional European Cup was rebranded 33 years ago.
UEFA said the decision favoring Relevent followed a tender process “which attracted bids from a number of global and regional agencies.”
“Naturally we are disappointed, but we remain incredibly proud of the work we have done alongside UEFA over the past 35 years,” TEAM said in a statement from its base in Lucerne. “Together, we have built a world-class commercial program that has delivered over 50 billion euros ($52 billion) in revenue for European club football.”
A confirmed deal between Relevent and the UEFA-ECA joint ventures is expected within weeks, UEFA said.
Relevent becoming the exclusive sales agent for UEFA men's club competitions likely will renew speculation about one day bringing a Champions League final to the United States. It has been a regular talking point since UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin was elected in 2016.
The final is the only Champions League game played at the weekend each season and would be a lucrative option for UEFA to take to the U.S., though also likely to be opposed by fans.
The next available final for UEFA to seek bidders to host is the title match of the 2027-28 season, the first in the commercial cycle Relevent is now in exclusive talks to market.
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AP soccer: https://apnews.com/hub/soccer
Graham Dunbar, The Associated Press
