DFL and Relevent Sports: Long-term cooperation to strengthen the Bundesliga in America | DFL German Football League

September 19, 2024 – The German Football League DFL is breaking new ground in international marketing to increase the popularity and growth of the Bundesliga and 2nd Bundesliga on the American continent in the long term and sustainably. Together with the Relevent Sports Group, the leading football marketing specialists in America, the DFL will significantly expand its marketing and sales activities in North, Central and South America and the Caribbean in the coming years.

A key step is to immediately establish a team based in New York City (USA) and Guadalajara (Mexico) with experts for content, marketing, PR and sales that will focus primarily on the Bundesliga and 2nd Bundesliga. By realigning and increasing sales, which will lead to a significant expansion of the existing workforce, will allow much closer to the individual markets and the media companies there. In addition, the team will produce cross-media content that will be specially designed for fans in 35 countries on the American continent, for example by focusing on Bundesliga players from these countries .

Marketing of media rights from 2026/27

As part of the long-term cooperation, Relevent Sports will also be commissioned with the central marketing of media rights to Bundesliga and 2nd Bundesliga matches across the American continent from the 2026/27 season over several rights cycles. From the 2024/25 season, Relevent Sports will also receive a special marketing mandate to conclude sponsorship partnerships for the Bundesliga and 2nd Bundesliga for the American market. This new approach will lead to more market-specific collaborations in which companies will only be partners of the Bundesliga and/or 2nd Bundesliga in certain regions or countries on the American continent that very relevant to their business.

The DFL is responsible for deciding on the strategic and content-related direction as well as the final selection of media partners and regional sponsorship partners. Before the collaboration was concluded, both the Presidium of the DFL eV and the Supervisory Board of the DFL subsidiary responsible for international marketing approved it. bundesliga-international/" data-heading="Bundesliga International" data-content="Die Bundesliga International vermarktet die internationalen audiovisuellen Medienrechte sowie zentrale Sponsoring- und Lizenzrechte. " data-more="mehr">International Bundesliga to agree The key data was also provided to the 36 professional clubs as part of a DFL General Meeting presented.

“Just the right time for such a partnership”

Steffen Merkel, DFL Managing Director: “The American market is at an interesting stage of development right now and there is huge potential for the federal leagues. The Copa América was held in the USA last summer and the next major competitions in the region are coming up, the 2025 Club World Cup and the 2026 World Cup. These competitions will provide further impetus your passion for football, especially among young fans. In this regard, this is the right time for such a partnership with the Relevent Sports Group, which has built a great reputation in recent years and stands for ambition, knowledge and growth. Together, we will take major steps forward in the marketing of German professional football.”

Peer Naubert, CMO of subsidiary DFL Bundesliga International: “The discussions with Relevent Sports were characterized by great trust and passion for German football as well as a clear vision for the increased presence of the Bundesliga and the 2nd Bundesliga on the American continent. Due to the development of football, and in particular the Bundesliga, we still see a lot of potential in the sector. With this strategic collaboration we want to drive our growth. The opening of our branch in 2018 was the cornerstone – now we want to write the mid- and long-term success stories of the Bundesliga in America.”

Danny Sillman, CEO of Relevent: “We are very pleased to work with the Bundesliga to expand the presence of German football in America. We know that the soccer market is growing rapidly in the US and across the region. We are excited to launch the ‘Bundesliga Americas’ team to capitalize on this interest with a local, content-based approach that will help grow the league’s fan base across North, Central America and South.”

Boris Gartner, President of Relevent: “This partnership is a major step forward in Relevent’s mission to bring the best international soccer to fans in North, Central and South America and support the growth of the sport. The long-term nature of this collaboration will allow us to expand the Bundesliga’s presence in the region through our expertise and network. We look forward to creating new touch points for fans and partners to experience one of the most historic and iconic leagues in the world.”

Support from Relevent Sports in organizing and marketing club trips to America is also part of the collaboration.

Headquartered in New York City, Relevent Sports has developed comprehensive internationalization strategies for several of the most prominent organizations in world soccer. As North America’s leading soccer and media marketing company, Relevent has a proven track record of executing key partnerships in media rights, sponsorships, events and content marketing and has added value for many of its partners compared to previous rights rounds.

More information about the future work of the “Bundesliga Americas” team will be announced in the coming months.