Key Takeaways:
- DTC success depends on building an always-on content ecosystem that extends beyond live matches into continuous fan engagement.
- Personalization at scale requires AI-powered content creation to turn large content inventories into tailored daily experiences.
- Owning the customer relationship shifts the focus from distribution to retention, where data and storytelling work together to reduce churn.
Every couple of weeks, it seems, another sports property announces a plan to launch a direct-to-consumer (DTC) streaming service. The latest to do so is UEFA. Multiple reports said the governing body of football in Europe intends to offer live games from the Champions League on the new platform, which could debut in Asia as early as next year.
The news comes on the heels of the Premier League’s decision to launch its own DTC channel in Singapore. The channel, Premier League Plus, will broadcast all 380 PL matches in the island city-state from the start of the 2026/27 season. The goal, according to the league, is to test whether the service could be brought to other markets in the future.
“For the first time, the Premier League is going to have its own customers,” said Richard Masters, the league’s chief executive. “It’s going to have to deal with promotion, pricing, churn, distribution, all of those things. We’re looking to see how that might be replicable all around the world. What we do with Premier League Plus in Singapore is really about learning as well as building the business.”
Lessons From DTC Pioneers
As the Premier League and UEFA prepare to broadcast their own content, there are learnings to take from some recent channels launched in the industry. Two notable ones are Ligue 1+, France’s Ligue de Football Professionnel (LFP) streaming service, and the enhanced ESPN app. With almost a year under their belt, these channels offer valuable lessons for organizations looking to take the DTC plunge.
These lesson include:
Build an editorial product – not just an OTT platform
One of LFP’s main ambitions when it launched Ligue 1+, said Cyprien Castanedo, head of media platform and innovation at LFP Media, was offering “something different compared to what we had in the previous years. We wanted an editorial product. We have archive content, the best of previous players, we try to have an offer that’s tailor-made for Ligue 1 fans, so that they understand it’s not just another broadcaster that bought the rights and is packaging them.”
Building an editorial identity requires owning your content pipeline. The Premier League, for example, took back control of its content by ending its long-standing partnership with marketing agency IMG in 2024 and bringing all international media production and distribution in-house. The move, explained Richard Masters, “allows us to look at different ways of developing our content for different audiences.”
Leverage AI to deliver personalized content at scale
Providing each subscriber with a personalized version of SportsCenter had long been on ESPN’s agenda. The launch of its new DTC app was the perfect opportunity to debut the feature, dubbed SportsCenter for You. But owning the world’s largest inventory of sports content, the network’s executives found out, isn’t enough to create tailored programming to all their subscribers.
“The big question became, well, do we produce enough videos to do this seven days a week for as many fans as we have in the app every day? The answer was no,” said Joshua Barbarotta, senior director of digital video content at ESPN. “So we started working with WSC Sports, and our partnership with them is really what has made this possible because they’re able to scale up our entire operation.”
WSC Sports’ AI-powered platform enables rights holders, among other things, to automate the creation of short-form videos. ESPN’s digital content team, which had used the technology before launching its DTC app to generate clips from more than 20 sports, ingested another dozen to the pipeline, and added 25 studio shows and self-produced video segments from 162 writers and editors to fill the content gap for SportsCenter for You.
Those efforts have translated into measurable gains. “We absolutely see that there’s higher engagement, there’s higher time spent with content that’s personalized for team fan bases,” said Barbarotta. “And we see a really high retention rate as far as SC for You is concerned, which means fans are consuming it one day and coming back the next day to consume it again.”
Fight churn with data
Going DTC has many benefits, but there are also risks to this approach. Chief among them is churn, especially among 18- to 34-year-olds, who are 19% more likely to churn from streaming services than other demographics. Interestingly, young viewers also subscribe to more streaming services than their average peer (4.2 vs. 3.3 on average), leading research firm Ampere Analysis to describe their behavior as “subscribe, stack, churn, repeat.”
The key to breaking this cycle, per Ligue 1, is using data to create the right narratives. “If Marseille, for example, is not in the running for the title and you see (in the data) that their fans are likely to churn, you need to adjust the story. So, how do I get new narratives? It’s a mix of the technology you’re using and storytelling hooks to link those two.”
This is where AI-powered content and data platforms come in. By tagging and indexing each goal, assist, or spectacular skill, every piece of short-form content transforms from passive entertainment into a powerful signal of fans’ preferences, giving teams and leagues the intelligence they need to offer subscribers the right narrative at the right time to prevent churn.
From Platform to Content Engine
Taken together, these examples show that launching a DTC service is less about replicating a broadcast feed and more about building a content ecosystem that continuously earns attention. AI-powered content creation platforms make this model viable, enabling a flow of relevant content that keeps fans engaged and reduces churn. Ultimately, owning the platform means owning the relationship, turning audiences into customers, and customers into long-term value.
Actionable Insights:
- Treat every match as a content engine: plan and publish a steady stream of clips, formats, and narratives beyond the live broadcast.
- Use real-time signals (behavior, preferences, timing) to personalize the content fans see, and when they see it.
- Build workflows that continuously feed your platforms with fresh content to keep users engaged and reduce churn.
