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Bundesliga is planning a revolution: media rights will be in its own hands in the future in 2026!
The Bundesliga plans to market its own media rights from 2026 in order to increase revenue and create sustainable structures.
Bundesliga is planning a revolution: media rights will be in its own hands in the future in 2026!
The Austrian Bundesliga is planning a significant change in the marketing of its media rights, which will take effect from summer 2026. CEO Christian Ebenbauer explained that the league has been working on the concept of exploiting its media rights via its own platform for around a year and a half. The current contract with the previous rights holder Sky expires in summer 2026. In a recent club conference, it was decided that offers from other bidders did not reflect the league's positive development, justifying the push to develop a direct to consumer model and transition to its own media company. Krone.at reports that an economic analysis has shown that this model is the best option.
The Bundesliga aims to increase revenue through this own exploitation. However, it is still unclear whether and how collaboration with partners could take place, as the legal and financial framework conditions still need to be clarified. Details of the implementation are to be announced by the end of 2023, while a business plan will be discussed at another club conference in June 2024. At the same time, discussions are underway with potential investors to secure the necessary financial resources for the start. High initial costs for technology and personnel are seen as a challenge, but financial support from the clubs is not planned.
Assignment of media rights in Germany
- Sky (Pay-TV): Freitagabendspiel, alle Einzelspiele am Samstagnachmittag, Topspiel am Samstagabend, und alle Spiele der 2. Bundesliga.
- DAZN (Streaming): Sonntagsspiele und die Bundesliga-Konferenz am Samstagnachmittag.
- Sat.1 (Free-TV): Neun Spiele pro Saison, einschließlich der Saisoneröffnung und Relegationsspiele.
- RTL (Free-TV): Topspiel der 2. Bundesliga.
- ARD und ZDF: Rechte für die Zusammenfassungen der Spiele.
Outlook for the future
For the Bundesliga in Austria, the own exploitation of media rights is a courageous step that also represents a challenge. A model for this development is the Dutch Eredivisie, which introduced a similar model in 2008. Potential collaboration with established providers for the technical infrastructure cannot be ruled out, which can be important, especially for technology and personnel, given the high initial costs. It is important to the league that objective reporting is not lost, with the DFL being cited as an example of critical reporting. Kicker.de informed that Bundesliga fans can prepare for changes in the broadcast strategy from the 2025/26 season.
Given developments in media rights at national and international level, it remains to be seen how the implementation of these plans will progress in the Austrian Bundesliga and what financial impact this will have on the clubs.