AFC Ajax's away match in the Conference League playoffs against FC Sion was not available on a standard television channel. The rights were bought by KIJK, who offered the match via pay-per-view for 4.99 euros, leading to significant criticism.
This is revealed in a report by Voetbal International this week. Criticism intensified when the first half of the match was not visible for many viewers due to technical problems. Fans have since received a refund of their 4.99 euro payment. Ajax's home match against FC Sion is available to watch via Ziggo Sport.
How does the sale of European rights work?
For the qualifying rounds of European tournaments, television rights are negotiated separately. The home club controls the rights for their qualifying matches. This sometimes leads to unusual situations, like with Ajax last week. The Amsterdam club currently sits sixth in the Eredivisie with four points from two games. They have scored four goals and conceded two, a goal difference of plus two.
The title race is already underway and Ajax trails leaders AZ Alkmaar by five points. The next fixture is an away match against Telstar on August 30th. You can view the full schedule on our fixtures page.
What did FC Twente do differently?
FC Twente avoided a similar scenario earlier this season. FC Twente's general director Dominique Scholten gave an interview to Tubantia about this issue. Twente played in the Europa League second qualifying round against Ferencváros from Hungary. For the away match, the home club sold the rights to an intermediary.
FC Twente and ESPN then bought back the television rights from this intermediary for over 30,000 euros. This purchase prevented the Ferencváros vs FC Twente match from being placed behind a pay-per-view wall. Scholten said about this: "In Budapest we did everything to buy back the rights from an intermediary."
When does a rights exchange go smoothly?
Not every negotiation over European rights is this complex. FC Twente previously played a European tie against Qarabag. For that tie, a simple rights swap was agreed. FC Twente sold the rights for the home match to a party in Baku, and Qarabag sold their home match rights to ESPN.
Dominique Scholten called this an easy transaction. "With Qarabag it was a piece of cake. A swap was done immediately," said the Twente director. This kind of agreement provides clarity for supporters and broadcasters. Current Eredivisie statistics can be found on our standings page.
What does this mean for future European matches?
The situation around the Ajax match highlights the unpredictability of rights sales in the early European rounds. Clubs have limited control over the sale of rights for their away matches in the qualifying phase. The home club can sell the rights to any party willing to pay, which can lead to pay-per-view arrangements that supporters must pay for.
For Ajax, this means future European away matches in the qualifying phase may again be available via paid streams. The club will need to prepare for potential criticism from supporters. Ajax's squad for the new season can be viewed in our squad overview. The focus now shifts to the league, where Ajax will try to close the gap on AZ Alkmaar.
