TF1 Group and World Rugby has announced the renewal of its long-standing partnership

Boulogne, 28 March 2018

Rugby World Cup 2019 and TF1 Group continue
record broadcast partnership

World Rugby has announced the renewal of its long-standing partnership with TF1 for Rugby World Cup 2019 will take place in Japan from September 20 to November 2, 2019.

Both partners are delighted to have concluded a fair agreement that reflects the tournament’s status as a premium, must-see event.

France is one of the world’s biggest rugby broadcast markets and was a driving-force behind record broadcast growth during Rugby World Cup 2015 which saw the live audience increase by 48 per cent to 479 million, while live audiences in Europe increased by 75 per cent.

World Rugby Chief Executive Brett Gosper said: “Rugby World Cup and TF1 have enjoyed a long and highly-successful partnership, generating record audience viewing figures. This deal will generate significant momentum in France, not just in 2019, but beyond to France 2023, while delivering a significant financial outcome for the ongoing development of the sport. Securing deals with major free-to-air broadcasters who are passionate about sport is central to World Rugby’s mission to make rugby accessible in a global context. With each Rugby World Cup we are broadening the sport’s reach and appeal through a broadcast and digital strategy that is aimed at reaching, engaging and inspiring new audiences within existing and emerging rugby markets.”

TF1’s audience for the Rugby World Cup 2015 final averaged 8.8 million, a 54 per cent audience share, while the broadcaster’s audience for the 2011 final involving France was 17.8 million, a huge 87 per cent audience share.
 

Chairman and CEO of the TF1 group Gilles Pélisson said: “We are proud and delighted to offer French viewers free-to-air coverage of this incredible event. This is a golden era for French sport and following the world-title success of France’s handball teams and the forthcoming 2018 FIFA World Cup, TF1 is delighted to be expanding its rights portfolio with Rugby World Cup 2019. This further demonstrates our commitment to Rugby and Rugby World Cup and our capacity to deliver the best programmes and the biggest events. TF1 continues to provide a strong link between our national teams and the French public.”

About Rugby World Cup: 

Rugby World Cup 2019 in Japan is the ninth edition of rugby's showcase global event and the first in Asia. The world's top 20 national teams will play in 48 matches hosted across 12 match cities for the right to lift the iconic Webb Ellis Cup and be crowned world champions. Rugby World Cup is the sport's financial engine, generating approximately 90 per cent of World Rugby's revenues for reinvestment in the global game over the four-year cycle. The record-breaking success of England 2015 is enabling World Rugby to invest £245.8 million in the sport by 2020, eclipsing the previous 2013-16 £201 million investment injection by 22 per cent. All the latest news can be found at www.rugbyworldcup.com and via @rugbyworldcup across Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

About TF1 Group:

TF1 is an integrated media group with a vocation to inform and entertain. It provides content and an offering adapted to all platforms.

TF1 is the leading private-sector unencrypted broadcaster in France. It broadcasts five complementary unencrypted channels (TF1, TMC, TFX, TF1 Séries Films and LCI), which together had an average 32.3% share of the key “Women under 50 Purchasing Decision-Makers” target audience in 2017.

This positioning is strengthened by the Group’s constant adaptation to new ways of consuming content. So TF1 is adding a high-powered digital dimension to its channels. It is also offering exclusive digital content and video-on-demand in order to reach all audiences on all platforms. Taking a majority stake in MinuteBuzz and setting up Studio71 France in partnership with Prosieben Sat.1 was designed to target millennials. And at the start of

2018, the TF1 group accelerated its digital transformation by reaching agreement with the Axel Springer group to acquire the aufeminin(2) group (a digital player with an editorial and web offering mainly covering fashion, beauty and cooking). With aufeminin, the TF1 group will be able to offer innovative solutions to brands based on awareness, affinity and influence.

The Group also screens the following theme channels to meet special-interest demand: TV Breizh, Histoire, Ushuaïa and Serieclub.

TF1’s advertising airtime sales arm offers advertisers the combined benefits of access to its mass-market television channels and to personal digital media. It also sells advertising slots on independent radio stations and numerous websites.

In conjunction with its core business, the TF1 group is present in the production and distribution of content relating to its own channels and to personal digital media. The main aim of taking a majority stake in Newen was to accelerate the international expansion of production and distribution.

Finally, the TF1 group has created a large range of complementary businesses in key areas such as home shopping, licences, board games, music and entertainment production, etc.

As a media group, TF1 is aware of its responsibilities and is engaged in high-quality dialogue with all its stakeholders in order to enhance transparency and continually improve its practices. This year the TF1 group launched TF1 Initiatives, a brand that brings together all its CSR activities around three pillars: solidarity, diversity and sustainability.

((1) Médiamétrie – Target: Women under 50 purchasing decision-makers.
(2) Completion of this deal is subject to clearance from the regulatory authorities in France and Austria.