DFB vs Kicker

DFB.TV now available via MagentaTV

DFB.TV, the pay-TV channel launched a few months ago by the German Football Association (DFB) and Sportainment Media Group, is expanding its distribution. As of now, the channel is also available on Deutsche Telekom's MagentaTV platform, becoming part of MagentaSport and the Family or Big TV packages. The companies also plan to cooperate in advertising sales, intending to offer agencies and advertisers modern Dynamic Ad Substitution for more efficient targeting. DFB.TV broadcasts content around the men's national team, junior national teams, women's 2nd Bundesliga and DFB-Pokal. The channel is already available on platforms such as DAZN, HD+, Sky, Vodafone, and Zattoo. This partnership significantly expands DFB.TV's reach.

• DFB.TV is now available on Deutsche Telekom's MagentaTV platform.
• MagentaTV integration includes MagentaSport and Family/Big TV packages.
• DFB.TV and Telekom plan cooperation in advertising sales using Dynamic Ad Substitution.

DFB Extends 3. Liga Broadcast Rights with Telekom to 2031

Deutsche Telekom secures exclusive broadcast rights for Germany's 3. Liga from 2027/28 to 2031, including all 380 matches and relegation playoffs. The deal, worth €124 million over four years, represents a 20% revenue increase for the DFB. Telekom retains free-TV rights for 38 matches per season, with a decision pending on whether to sublicense them to ARD. The agreement also expands digital and social media usage rights for highlights. ARD secured a separate highlights package, while DAZN will cover all matches with clips. New partners 'Kicker' and 'Leagues' acquired digital short-form and clip rights. The extension coincides with MagentaSport's tenth year covering the league, during which TV reach has grown sevenfold, though not independently verified. Telekom aims to leverage the league to enhance its football strategy and reach broader audiences via MagentaTV and freemium offerings.

• Deutsche Telekom secures exclusive 3. Liga broadcast rights from 2027/28 to 2031.
• The deal is worth €124 million over four years, a 20% increase in revenue for the DFB.
• Telekom retains free-TV rights for 38 matches per season, with potential sublicensing to ARD.

Women's football internationals stay with ARD and ZDF until 2031

The German women's national football team's international matches will continue to be broadcast by public broadcasters ARD and ZDF through 2031. SportA, the joint sports rights agency of ARD and ZDF, has extended its exclusive media rights agreement with the German Football Association (DFB). The rights cover all Nations League games, European Championship 2029 qualifiers, and World Cup 2031 preparatory matches. The rights include live and post-event usage across all platforms, including broadcast, online, and audio. The next matches include Germany vs. Australia on October 9, 2026 (ZDF) and Germany vs. Japan on October 13, 2026 (ARD). This deal underscores the public broadcasters' commitment to women's football in Germany.

• SportA extends exclusive media rights for all DFB women's international matches until 2031
• The rights cover all Nations League games, European Championship 2029 qualifiers, and World Cup 2031 preparatory matches
• ARD and ZDF will broadcast all matches live and on-demand across all platforms

Podcast-Powerplay: kicker und Eishockey NEWS holen Moritz Seider und Tim Stützle ans Mikrofon

Exklusiver Podcast mit zwei deutschen NHL-Stars: kicker und Eishockey NEWS starten einen Podcast mit Moritz Seider und Tim Stützle.

How kicker Integrates Editorial Standards and Brand Partnerships

In a podcast interview with turi2, kicker's Sales Director Lukas Ringer and Editorial Director Tobias Goldbrunner discussed how the sports publisher successfully balances journalistic integrity with advertising. Rather than implementing quick, low-value ad integrations, kicker prioritizes high-quality branded content that delivers real value to readers. Despite the early exit of the German national team during the World Cup, kicker generated over 3 billion pageviews by offering deep, analytical coverage. Ringer emphasized that local and regional league results provide highly targeted, valuable audiences for advertisers, and expressed confidence in their monetization strategy despite broader industry concerns about shrinking advertising budgets.

• kicker recorded over 3 billion pageviews on its website during the World Cup period.
• Sales Director Lukas Ringer stated that kicker avoids simple logo-slapping integrations in favor of high-quality branded content.
• The publisher leverages regional and local league data to offer highly targeted audience segments to advertisers.

ARD Opens Bundesliga Audio Streams to External Partners

ARD will make its live audio reports from Bundesliga stadiums available on external media partner platforms starting with the 2026/27 season. Until now the Sportschau live commentaries were limited to ARD channels such as ARD Sounds and Sportschau.de. The expansion allows selected external publishers — named in the report as kicker, RND and Bundesliga — to carry the live audiostreams. The change broadens distribution of ARD's football audio content across third-party sites and apps. The report was published by Horizont on 2026-08-25 (author: David Hein).

• ARD will allow external media partners to publish live Bundesliga audiostreams starting in the 2026/27 season.
• Named external partners in the article are kicker, RND and Bundesliga.
• Previously, the Sportschau live reports were available only on ARD platforms like ARD Sounds and Sportschau.de.