Private company

beIN SPORTS

Qatari state-owned multinational network of sports channels

beIN Sports ( BEE-in) is a Qatari multinational network of sports channels owned and operated by the state-owned media group beIN. The network has played a major role in the increased commercialization of Qatari sports. Its chairman is Nasser Al-Khelaifi, and its CEO is Yousef Obaidly.² From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0

Last updated Oct 16, 2026.

Overview

Jun 1, 2012Founded¹

HeadquartersDoha¹
Websitewww.beinsports.com

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The story

Al Jazeera Media Network entered the European television rights market in June 2011 when it purchased a package of live French football Ligue 1 matches from 2012 to 2016 for €90 million a year. The deal makes them joint broadcasters of domestic top-flight football in France alongside long-term rights holders Canal+. The broadcaster also acquired the pay-TV rights to the UEFA Champions League, Europa League from 2012 to 2015, Euro 2012 and Euro 2016 in France. France was targeted as Al Jazeera's first entry into Europe due to the fact that there were no dedicated sports channels, unlike in the United Kingdom.

The name "beIN Sports" was first revealed in early 2012. According to Nasser Al-Khelaifi, the director of Al Jazeera Sports, the name "symbolises the mind of two channels aiming at bringing live and exclusive broadcasting of the biggest events." Former Canal+ executive Charles Bietry was hired by Al Jazeera to launch the channels. The channels were made available on all cable and IPTV providers and select satellite providers. CanalSat – owned by Canal+ Group – has declined to carry the channels as of March 2012. beIN Sports was officially launched on June 1, 2012, in time to broadcast Euro 2012. beIN Sports 2 commenced on July 27, 2012, in time to broadcast the French Ligue 2 season, and before the start of the 2012–13 Ligue 1 season. In June 2015, it was announced that Nasser Al-Khelaifi had plans to create the beIN Sports channel on TV operators to cable in Brazil.

beIN Sports Spain officially began broadcasting on 1 July 2015, the date on which Gol Televisión ceased broadcasting all football games, which during the summer were in place under the slogan "Change the game", "Cambia el juego" in Spanish. Thanks to an alliance between Al Jazeera and Mediapro, beIN Sports Spain offers UEFA Champions League (2015–2018), UEFA Europa League (2015–2018), UEFA Super Cup (2015–2017), Premier League (2015–16 season only), Serie A, Primeira Liga, Jupiler Pro League, Ligue 1, DFB Pokal, Coupe de la Ligue, KNVB Beker, Johan Cruijff Shield, Copa de Brasil, CONCACAF Gold Cup, Copa Libertadores and Copa Sudamericana. beIN Sports Spain can be viewed over the Internet, smart TV (LG and Samsung), PC, laptops, tablets, Smartphones (iOS/Android), PS3/PS4, Chromecast, TV Operators (Orange, Vodafone and Telecable) and online platforms (beIN Sports Connect, Total Channel and YouTube). On Wednesday August 19, due to the start of the playoffs of the UEFA Champions League, beIN Sports (Spain) begins to emit beIN Sports MAX (up to 8 simultaneous channels) to broadcast all matches of the UEFA Champions League and UEFA Europa League.

beIN Sports (Spain) developed a channel licensed for bars in Spain called "beIN Sports BAR". The channel stopped transmission on 9 August 2018.

For the 2016–2017 season and onwards, beIN Sports Spain has the television rights to La Liga (eight games a day, always one of Real Madrid or FC Barcelona) and Copa del Rey.

In 2015, beIN Sports expanded its global footprint by acquiring Digiturk, a Turkish-pay-TV platform, which added millions of subscribers to its audience. This move positioned the network as a leader in both European and Asian markets. By 2024, beIN Sports achieved a major milestone, attracting over 1.2 billion views for its coverage of the UEFA Euro 2024 tournament, setting a new standard for sports broadcasting globally (beIN Sports, 2024). The network also embraced digital innovation, offering subscribers access to live and on-demand content through the beIN CONNECT platform, thus enhancing its accessibility and user engagement (Al-Obaidly, 2019).

On November 1, 2017, beIN Sports created an Olympic Channel in the Middle East and North Africa region.

beIN Sports was firstly launched in Singapore through Starhub TV Channel 213 on 19 April 2016. beIN Sports was briefly launched on Singtel TV Channel 109 from 6 August 2019 to 2 October 2021. The latter was then returned on 11 March 2022 due to the closure for Fox Sports Asia. beIN Sports 1 though 3 for Singtel TV are now located on Channel 126, 127 and 128 respectively.

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beIN Sports launched on Malaysia Astro Channel 837 on 1 August 2016 before the channel was relocated to Channel 818 on 1 August 2019 and then to Channel 820 on 17 October 2024. The channel was also launched on Unifi TV on 1 May 2022.

beIN Sports MAX, which mostly aired UEFA Champions and Europa League, launched on Singtel TV on Channel 110 on 19 October 2018. It also launched on Astro on Channel 841 on 4 December 2018 before it was relocate to Channel 819 on 1 August 2019. On 7 January 2022, beIN Sports Max was rebranded to beIN Sports 3 in Malaysia and Singapore.

In France, where beIN Sports was launched for the first time, it holds the rights to broadcast major football tournaments, including Ligue 1, La Liga, Serie A, Bundesliga and the European Football Championship. Along with Canal+, beIN Sports also holds the rights to broadcast all the Champions League matches from 2021 to 2024.

In the United States and Canada, beIN Sports holds the rights to broadcast La Liga, Ligue 1, CONMEBOL World Cup Qualifiers, Copa Libertadores and Football League Championship matches and Real Madrid TV. It launched two channels in the United States (English and Spanish), in August 2012, followed by a full channel in Canada, on 31 January 2014.

In Indonesia, beIN Sports holds the rights to broadcast La Liga, Ligue 1, Serie A (2013–2016, return in 2018), Süper Lig (2017–18 until 2021–22), A-League (starts 2017–18 season), FFA Cup (starts 2017 season), CAF World Cup Qualifiers, Major League Soccer (MLS), and more. In Malaysia, beIN Sports offers comprehensive coverage of European Football Leagues including La Liga, Ligue 1 and more.

In Hong Kong, beIN Sports holds the rights to broadcast Serie A, Ligue 1, Major League Soccer (MLS), A-League (starts 2017–18 season), FFA Cup (starts 2017 season), UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League and more.

In Thailand, beIN Sports holds the rights to broadcast La Liga, Serie A (2013–2016, return in 2018), Ligue 1, Bundesliga, MLS (until 2022), Süper Lig (2017–18 until 2021–22), A-League (starts 2017–18 season), FFA Cup (starts 2017 season), UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League and more.

In Australia, the channel was launched in late November 2014, following the acquisition of Setanta Sports Australia which was rebranded as beIN Sports. beIN Sports Australia holds the rights to broadcast UEFA Champions League (2015–2018), UEFA Europa League (2015–2018), EFL Cup, La Liga, Serie A, Ligue 1, Bundesliga, MLS, Copa Libertadores and RBS Six Nations. On 14 March 2016, beIN Sports Australia expanded from one to three channels, all in HD, and as of 15 May 2016 has been made available to all Foxtel sport pack subscribers, rather than the original add-on cost for a single SD channel. Fetch subscribers still only have access to beIN Sports 1, which is an add-on cost each month.

beIN Connect, also known as beIN Sports Connect, is a subsidiary over-the-top content (OTT) service started in 2014. It allows users to watch live and on-demand video content from a Mac, Windows PC, mobile phone, Xbox 360, Xbox One, PlayStation 3 or PlayStation 4 via a broadband or Wi-Fi internet connection. On-demand content comprises sports highlights, movies, and TV shows. beIN CONNECT is available as a paid service in France, Spain, United States, Canada, Turkey (in 2017), Asia-Pacific (in 2017) and the MENA region.

From Wikipedia’s article on BeIN Sports, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.³

Leadership

Who has led beIN SPORTS, and when. Pick a name to see everywhere that person has worked.

Chief executive officerNasser Al-Kadafi¹

Subsidiaries and ownership

Owners

beIN Media Group

Subsidiaries

beIN CONNECT

From Wikidata.¹

Controversies and legal

Controversies

Market position

beIN Sports' market positions in not important regions have led to concerns over the network's dominance. In 2016, French authorities blocked a deal by beIN Sports France to sub-license its sports properties to Canal+ Sport, as it would have given the partnership control of 80% of French sports media rights. At the 2017 World Men's Handball Championship, whose international media rights were owned by beIN Sports, French radio stations declined to air the tournament as beIN Sports wanted them to pay administrative fees about five times higher than technical cost, in violation of French law. The 2017 Africa Cup of Nations were also left without domestic television coverage in four countries participating in the tournament – Algeria, Egypt, Morocco, and Tunisia – due to exorbitant sublicensing fees being demanded from free-to-air broadcasters by beIN as the region's rightsholder.

In August 2018, beIN Sports was fined, and subsequently banned from operating in Saudi Arabia, with the government citing its forced bundling of the networks with unrelated services. beIN criticised the actions as being politically-motivated. The following March, beIN's rights to the Asian Football Confederation (AFC) were stripped in Saudi Arabia to "cancel" its monopoly on the sport, due to the "illegality of BeIN Sport [sic] to transmit in the Kingdom due to the grave violations of the laws and regulations BeIN Sport has committed", and "its inability to obtain the required licenses necessary for it to fulfil its commitments in transmitting AFC's competitions to the viewers and followers in the Kingdom". beIN threatened legal action, accusing the AFC of colluding with the Saudi Arabian Football Federation to breach its contract.

By contrast, beIN Sports' relatively niche position in the United States (where it focuses particularly on international sports not picked up by other networks) led to criticism of its broadcasting deal with the WTA Tour for non-domestic events, as the channel's prioritisation of football in its scheduling, narrower carriage than its previous broadcaster Tennis Channel, as well as being dropped by several major cable providers in 2018, limited the availability of its coverage. These issues led to concerns that the limited coverage would give women's tennis little exposure outside of majors and domestic tour events. beIN Sports U.S. dropped the WTA Tour after the 2018 season, and it subsequently signed a new contract to return to Tennis Channel in the 2019 season.

In April 2020, amidst claims of Saudi PIF taking over Premier League club Newcastle United, beIN Sports wrote a letter to league's chief executive Richard Masters and issued a notice to 19 clubs, except Newcastle. In its letter, the broadcaster claimed that Saudi Arabian pay TV network beoutQ, has been illicitly regulating its copyright protected content and demanded Premier League to block the deal. "Given the crippling economic effect that coronavirus is having on the sports industry, this is all happening at a time when football clubs need to protect their broadcast revenue the most," BeIN chief executive Yousef al-Obaidly wrote.

beIN has unveiled its new streaming service for the MENA region.

Premier League rights

In 2014, the Premier League restricted beIN Sports in the MENA region to airing one match per-week with a 3:00 p.m. UK time kickoff on television only. As these matches may not be broadcast within the United Kingdom due to domestic rights restrictions, the Premier League showed concerns that beIN was not taking adequate steps to prevent its streaming broadcasts from being used for unauthorized retransmissions, especially into the United Kingdom. In November 2014, the Premier League reinstated beIN's full access to 3 p.m. fixtures.

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In 2020, the company wrote to Premier League clubs to warn them against agreeing to a takeover deal with a Saudi-led consortium for Newcastle United, because of Saudi backing for the "theft" of BeIN transmissions by the Saudi broadcaster beoutQ. The Premier League board is currently allowed the deal to go through.

beoutQ

Due to the then-ongoing diplomatic crisis between Qatar and other Arab countries, beIN has been restricted from doing business in Saudi Arabia and the UAE since June 2017. The UAE un-banned the MENA network a month later, with no progress from Saudi Arabia reported. Months later in August 2018, it was revealed the Saudi pirate broadcaster, beoutQ, has been pirating the networks' programming in the region for over a year, which has faced criticism from beIN and rightsholders over its "industrial-scale" copyright infringement. However, no law firm in Saudi Arabia was reportedly willing to represent the rightsholders in Saudi courts. Nor was the Saudi-majority owned ArabSat reported of responding to takedown pleas against beoutQ. In August 2019, the operations were eventually taken off-air. However, in November of same year, beIN Media alerted that despite ceasing satellite transmissions in mid-August, pirate broadcast operation, beoutQ, was still distributing its copyrighted content via the IPTV function of set-top boxes. beIN Media's licence in Saudi Arabia was permanently revoked by Saudi authorities in July 2020 under the charges of antitrust practices following the World Trade Organization ruling the prior month concluding that Saudi Arabia didn't take any noticeable action in stopping beoutQ, and to the contrary, harboured and sponsored its operations. beIN Media says that even after the signing of al-'Ula Declaration in early January 2021, Saudi Arabia is yet to reverse its decision to ban its operations in the national market.

However, on 6 October 2021, beIN media group said in a statement that Saudi Arabia will soon lift a four year ban on the channel and close its pirate websites, only beIN holds the rights to broadcast the Premier League across the Middle East.

Italian football coverage rights

In November 2019, beIN Sports announced that it was reviewing its partnership with Serie A and considering cancelling all of its agreements in Italian football, following the league's decision to play a Supercoppa Italiana match between Juventus and Lazio in Saudi Arabia, despite piracy concerns. "It is remarkable what Serie A is seemingly prepared to jeopardize, not only all the financial revenues from one of its biggest broadcaster partners, but also the exposure beIN gives to the league in markets all around the world," a statement from the television network read.

In matchweek 27 of 2019–20 season, other countries (exc. NZ), viewers were treated instead to a Turkish Süper Lig match between Denizlispor and Besiktas. And a late-night trawl through beIN Sports website for all of Saturday's results suggested there weren't any games played in Italy—just England, Spain, France and Germany. For the record, Torino and Parma drew 1-1.

But in matchweek 28, beIN Sports social medias apologizes to all global viewers and announced the comeback coverage.

beIN paid $500 million to broadcast Serie A from 2018 to 2021, an agreement that has been beset by snags. It claims strong backing from competitions including England's Premier League, Spain's La Liga and the Wimbledon tennis championships, as part of a long-running campaign against its sports rights being pirated in Saudi Arabia.