The broadcaster rejected a proposal from the league, whose clubs voted for the large part in favour of ending the deal after the breakdown in relations between the two parties. The decision by the clubs plunges the league deeper into a crisis which has been ongoing for several years, since Spanish company Mediapro pulled out of a record broadcast deal in 2020, just months after it came into effect.

The DAZN deal was only agreed last July, a couple of weeks ahead of this season starting, with the British streaming platform replacing previous rights holders Canal Plus and Amazon. DAZN has been showing eight out of nine Ligue 1 matches per week, with Qatar's beIN Sports broadcasting the other game, for the total combined price of 500 million euros ($564m) annually.

That represented a significant reduction from the previous deal, worth 624 million euros a year. DAZN is due to pay 400 million euros per year, with the contract in place until 2029, but the agreement allows either party to back out at the end of next season. The French league (LFP) said in a statement that it expected its broadcast partner "to continue to carry out all of its obligations" for the time being.

It said that mediation between the parties, which started last month, had not enabled them to find a solution to their differences. DAZN was late in paying an instalment of 35 million euros at the beginning of this year and is due to pay two more instalments worth a total of 140 million euros, at the end of this month and in June.