SPORT1 MEDIEN

RTL to Air Fewer F1 Races; Erik Lesser Leaves ARD

A DWDL sports update (22 June 2026) reports that RTL — despite a sublicensing arrangement with Sky Deutschland — will broadcast only five Formula 1 races this season (including Monaco and Barcelona already shown) plus four further Grand Prix (Belgium, Netherlands, Spain, Las Vegas) and five additional qualifying/sprint sessions (Great Britain, Hungary, Italy, Singapore, Austin). All races and qualifying sessions remain available on Sky, and RTL and Sky will provide separate commentary. The ARD confirmed that biathlon expert and ex‑pro Erik Lesser will leave to focus on his coaching career; ARD has extended the contract of Arnd Peiffer. ProSieben posted comparatively strong DTM ratings (260,000 viewers; 7.9% in 14–49 demo). RTL also added former pro Sebastian Rode to its U19 European Championship expert lineup and will show German U19 matches on RTL+ and the RTL Sport YouTube channel.

Highlight Communications: Sport1 Faces Deep Financial Crisis

Highlight Communications’ 2025 annual report warns of material uncertainties that cast doubt on the group’s ability to continue as a going concern. The company faces a CHF 74.5 million bank repayment and reports €57.5 million of overdue licence liabilities linked to Sport1 Medien GmbH, with those liabilities reportedly secured by shares in Sport1 Digital GmbH. Highlight has written down the goodwill of Sport1 Medien to zero (previously CHF 84.5m) and fully impaired other assets such as online-casino brand Jackpot50. The company sold production unit Plazamedia to DMC Production (now DMC Production Germany) for a symbolic €1, triggering an approximate CHF 7.25m deconsolidation loss. CEO Bernhard Burgener and Acunmedya (50% owner of linear Sport1) say they are engaging partners and banks, but future financing, rights renewals and digital audience declines leave the group’s sports & event segment in a precarious position.

Survivor Flops on Sport1; Final Draws 80,000 Viewers

Sport1's reboot of the adventure format "Survivor" failed to attract significant audiences despite a run since mid‑March. The channel averaged fewer than 100,000 viewers per episode, and the season finale on 30 May 2026 drew just 80,000 viewers at 20:15, yielding a 0.4% market share overall and 0.2% among 14–49-year-olds; a subsequent repeat averaged 10,000. Sixx's repeat of the "Germany's Next Topmodel" final reached about 50,000 viewers and a 0.7% share in the 14–49 demo. By contrast, Nitro's screening of James Bond ("In tödlicher Mission") attracted roughly 370,000 viewers and a 3.3% share in 14–49. The Disney Channel's showing of the animated film "Up" achieved 2.1% in the 14–49 demo, and DMAX reached up to 4.1% with "Steel Buddies." Article by Alexander Krei published on 2026-05-30 on DWDL.de.