Public screening

Public screenings for the European Football Championship: what to consider

Many organisers will once again be holding public screening events for the European Football Championship this year. Whether it’s in the office, at an open-air bar or as part of a club event, you need permission from SUISA for these kinds of events. Here you find the most important questions and answers.

1. I want to show the EURO 2024 matches in my bar. Do I need a permit from SUISA for this and what’s the cost?

Yes. If you hold a public screening of a sporting event outside of a private setting, you will need a licence, i.e. a permit, from SUISA. According to Swiss copyright law, ‘private’ means ‘within a group of people who are closely connected to each other, like relatives or friends’.

If you are already a SUISA customer and pay for a licence to show TV broadcasts on your premises under the Common Tariff 3a (CT 3a, available only in German, French or Italian), you don’t need to do anything. If you only want to show TV broadcasts during the European Football Championship, you can purchase one licence for each calendar month – i.e. for all European Championship matches in June and July. If the venue area is no bigger than 1,000 m², the SUISA licence costs CHF 20.80 per month, i.e. a total of CHF 41.60 for the entire European Championship. If you want to broadcast the matches, but you also want to play music before and after – regardless of whether this comes from a CD, the radio or a streaming platform – you will be charged an additional CHF 19.20 per month.

Details on the CT 3a, an overview of costs and the form to apply for the licence can be found at www.suisa.ch/3a

The CT 3a is only valid for screens or projection surfaces with a screen size of up to 3 metres. The Common Tariff 3c (CT 3c, available only in German French oder Italian) applies to screen sizes of 3 metres or more. You can find more information about this in the answer to question 4.

2. Our club is organising public screenings for the Swiss national team’s matches. We are not charging admission and the drinks are free. Do we still have to pay SUISA for this?

Yes, because it’s not just friends or relatives who take part in club events. So under copyright law, these kinds of events take place outside of a private setting. Even if the event, the drinks or the food are free of charge for guests, you still need a licence from SUISA.

3. Do you also need a licence if a company transmits matches for its employees?

Yes, even in this case, the match is being shown outside of a private setting, even if it’s just your employees who are watching. Here, too, if you are already a SUISA customer and pay for a CT 3a licence to taransmit audiovisual content – i.e. TV broadcasts or videos – you do not need an additional licence to show the European Championship matches. Otherwise, you can purchase one licence for each calendar month as described in point 1.

4. We are holding a public screening on a large screen in the town square. Do we also need a CT 3a licence for this?

The CT 3a is valid for screens or projection surfaces with a screen size of up to 3 metres. For larger projection screens, you need a licence under the Common Tariff 3c (CT 3c). The cost here depends on a number of factors:

• Size of the screen or projection area
• With or without admission, charges for drinks or similar payments
• Number of days on which the matches are broadcast

For example, if you hold a public screening on a large screen with a screen size of 6 meters, do not charge admission and do not charge for drinks, you will pay:

• For a single match: CHF 104
• For the whole European Championship: CHF 520

So if you hold a public screening on a large screen on six days or more, the monthly fee is worth it. According to the tariff text, this is valid for a maximum of 30 consecutive days and the entire European Championship lasts 31 days, but SUISA is operating on a goodwill basis in this regard.

If you charge admission to an event or charge for drinks, the cost doubles.

Details on the CT 3c can be found in this SUISA information sheet (available only in German, French and Italian).

5. After the public screening, we’re having a party with a DJ. Do I need a different licence for this?

Yes. If you combine the public screening event with an event that has a DJ or band, you need an additional licence from SUISA. Common Tariff H (CT H) applies to hotels and restaurants, and Common Tariff Hb (CT Hb) applies outside hotels and restaurants. These Tariffs are at the moment only available in German, French or Italian, sorry. 

The latter also includes pop-up bars around for no longer than three months.