Second attempt at selling rights in the Bundesliga: The DFL management is under enormous pressure when it comes to billion-dollar poker after DAZN’s lawsuit, has made a change and has to look to Great Britain.
The clubs in both Bundesligas are eagerly awaiting the second attempt. After an unprecedented dispute and a delay of 224 days, the German Football League (DFL) will try to restart the billion-dollar TV rights auction on Monday next week. Many of the 36 professional clubs are nervous because, after the annoying delay, they finally want to know how much money they can expect to receive in the next four seasons. However, there is still uncertainty in the legal area and difficulties with an important media partner.
The sum of the TV contracts is absolutely crucial for budget planning. Both leagues currently earn an average of around 1.1 billion euros per season. Will there be more now? Or will the clubs have to cope with a loss like they did at the auction four years ago? Despite the figures that became known during the dispute between the DFL and the Internet broadcaster DAZN, this can hardly be predicted.
In mid-April, DAZN offered around 400 million euros annually for package B with the games on Friday and Saturday afternoon. That’s around 1.6 billion euros for the four-year rights period. Calculated over this four-year period, the offer is said to have been around 320 million euros higher than that of the pay-TV channel Sky, which was awarded the contract despite the significantly lower bid – and the package with 196 games according to a judgment by the German Institution for Arbitration (DIS) lost again in September. Sky now has to bid again when the auction restarts.
Sports marketing expert Marco Klewenhagen believes that DAZN wanted to force Sky out of the market with its April offer. The managing director of the company SpoBis says: “It would be surprising if DAZN suddenly stopped pursuing its strategic goal. Previous disputes have been resolved by the arbitral tribunal’s decision and should not have any bearing on this.”
Verdict actually embarrassing for the DFL
Since the competitors are unlikely to offer less at the new auction than in April, the DFL could subsequently become a winner of the verdict, which is actually embarrassing for them. The figures disclosed are likely to help Sky in particular when calculating a new offer. “Sky initially made a significantly lower offer, but now the company has clarity about DAZN’s serious and potentially threatening strategy,” explains Klewenhagen.
On the other hand, the Sky Group has financial problems. Last year, the British-based company said it reported losses and wrote off 1.2 billion pounds (1.44 billion euros) for its weakening subsidiaries in Germany and Italy.
In addition, it was only announced two weeks ago that Sky Media in Great Britain had incorrectly calculated advertising revenue for several years and had to pay back several hundred million pounds. “The billing issue at Sky Media UK is in no way related to nor does it have any impact on the Sky DACH business,” it said on request. “Sky Media UK has carried out an intensive review, actively informed all partners and is currently in the process of fully compensating them. In addition, all necessary internal measures have been taken to ensure that such an incident does not happen again.”
It is not an easy market situation for the DFL negotiators, who are already under pressure and under critical scrutiny from the clubs. Above all because the DIS ruling proves the incorrect approach of the five marketing specialists around managing director Steffen Merkel and the executive board members involved.
As in mid-April, the new auction will begin next Monday with bidding for package B. In the days following, the other pay-TV rights for live broadcasts will be auctioned off first. Overall, however, the auction in the second attempt – compared to the original planning – was shortened by two days: On the last days, several free TV packages will be offered at the same time and sold to the highest bidder. This is the only change in the process.
According to the current status, on December 5th the clubs will find out what their total income will be in the 2025/26 to 2028/29 seasons. Time is running out. Because there is still a difficult discussion ahead: “We want to tackle the issue of distribution after the national tender has been completed,” Merkel had already announced.
But there is still a reservation. Because the reasons for the DIS ruling are not yet available. “It remains uncertain whether any of the parties involved will respond to the arbitration tribunal’s reasons,” says sports marketing expert Klewenhagen. “If a party were to take legal action against the decision, this would be problematic for everyone involved, especially for the Bundesliga, as the entire process could be significantly delayed.”
dpa/SUF
