Observed Signal · Aug 30, 2026 · Audience Ratings Report · Source: DWDL · Impact: 2/5 · Sentiment: Positive
Bundesliga Delivers Strong Saturday Ratings for Sky and RTL
The Bundesliga generated high TV ratings on Saturday, delivering strong audiences for Sky and free‑to‑air broadcaster RTL. Sky averaged 980,000 viewers from 15:30, giving it an 11.2% overall share and 24.3% among 14–49-year-olds. RTL's free‑TV transmission of RB Leipzig vs. Borussia Mönchengladbach reached about 750,000 viewers in the first half and 820,000 in the second, with solid shares in the 14–59 and 14–49 target groups. Nitro scored nearly half a million viewers for a 2. Bundesliga match in prime time. All audience figures are cited as coming from AGF SCOPE 1.15 (AGF Videoforschung).
Confirms strong linear TV reach for Bundesliga programming, relevant for broadcasters' ad inventory and advertisers buying linear TV impressions, but not a major industry-shifting event.
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Key Takeaways & Evidence Grounding
- Sky's Saturday afternoon Bundesliga broadcasts averaged 980,000 viewers from 15:30, delivering an 11.2% market share overall and 24.3% among 14–49-year-olds.
- RTL's free-TV broadcast of RB Leipzig vs. Borussia Mönchengladbach reached approximately 750,000 viewers in the first half and 820,000 in the second; 14–59 market shares were 11.6% and 10.0%, 14–49 shares were 10.5% and 8.1%.
- The early evening Sky match (Borussia Dortmund vs. HSV) drew 0.9 million viewers, equating to a 6.2% overall share and 19.5% among 14–49-year-olds.
- Nitro's 2. Bundesliga game (1. FC Nürnberg vs. Arminia Bielefeld) reached just under 0.5 million viewers in prime time; Sky had an additional ~190,000 viewers for the same match.
- Data source for all figures: AGF SCOPE 1.15 (AGF Videoforschung), preliminary weighted TV data.
Connected Companies & Entities
10 Entities mapped“Sky's Saturday afternoon Bundesliga broadcasts averaged 980,000 viewers from 15:30, giving the pay-TV provider an 11.2% market share overall...”
“© DWDL.de GmbH, 2001-2026 (publisher of the article)....”
“The article cites AGF SCOPE 1.15 as the source for all data: 'Source for all data in this article, unless otherwise noted: AGF SCOPE 1.15; m...”
“Top channel market shares listed for the day include ZDF at 13.1%....”
“Top channel market shares listed for the day include Das Erste (Das Erste) at 7.3%....”
“Top channel market shares listed for the day include VOX at 3.9%....”
“Top channel market shares listed for the day include Sat.1 among the leading channels....”
“Sky's Saturday afternoon Bundesliga broadcasts averaged 980,000 viewers from 15:30, giving the pay-TV provider an 11.2% market share overall...”
“RTL transmitted the RB Leipzig vs Borussia Mönchengladbach match, attracting about 750,000 viewers in the first half and 820,000 in the seco...”
“RTL transmitted the RB Leipzig vs Borussia Mönchengladbach match, attracting about 750,000 viewers in the first half and 820,000 in the seco...”
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2nd Bundesliga Season Boosts RTL Ratings
The 2. Bundesliga season opener delivered strong linear-TV ratings for RTL: the Wolfsburg vs. Kaiserslautern broadcast averaged about 1.4 million viewers in the first half and roughly 1.53 million in the second, yielding an 8.9% overall market share and 15.0% among 14–49-year-olds. Sat.1 had posted strong numbers on Friday with the Bochum vs. Hertha match. Sky simulcast the RTL feed and added roughly 200,000 viewers (1.2% overall share, 2.0% among 14–49 and 14–59). Other highlights: VOX’s film “Jurassic Park” reached 0.69 million viewers and 9.3% in 14–49, Sat.1’s “Hotel Transsilvanien 4” had modest reach with higher market shares, and ProSieben and RTLzwei posted lower audiences. Data source for the figures is AGF SCOPE 1.15.
Bundesliga final posts top ratings; Nitro strong with 24h race
Linear-TV viewing on May 16, 2026 saw strong audiences across platforms: Sky, DAZN (linear channel DAZN 1) and the ARD "Sportschau" delivered high market shares during the Bundesliga season finale, while Nitro achieved notable success with live coverage of the 24‑hour Nürburgring race. AGF Videoforschung / AGF SCOPE provisional data show Sky’s single-game transmissions averaged 1.25 million viewers on the final matchday (12.2% share) and reached 21.4% market share among 14–49-year-olds (about 400,000 viewers). The Sportschau averaged 3.76 million viewers (26.0% overall, 22.1% in 14–49). DAZN 1’s conference on linear TV averaged 130,000 viewers (3.7% in 14–49) excluding additional streaming/app usage. Nitro’s 24-hour race averaged ~300,000 viewers and 4.5% in 14–49, giving the channel a day market share of 3.8% in 14–49 and placing it fourth overall and as the second-strongest private broadcaster that day (after RTL).
2. Bundesliga Kickoff Delivers High Ratings for Sat.1 and Sky
The 2. Bundesliga season opener between VfL Bochum and Hertha BSC on August 7, 2026, attracted strong linear-TV audiences: Sat.1 averaged 1.47 million viewers in the first half and 1.65 million in the second, becoming the largest private-channel primetime audience that evening, though below last year’s opener. Sat.1 posted high market shares in key demos (14–49: 15.2% / 11.5%; 14–59: 10.6% / 9.5%). Sky’s pay-TV relay averaged a 5.2% market share in the target group with about 400,000 viewers. Other highlights: ProSieben’s film “Freelancer” drew 650,000 viewers (10.1% of 14–49), RTL’s “Absolut Musik” averaged 1.07 million (9.3% of 14–49; 10.0% of 14–59), and ZDF led overall day market share (15.3%). Data source: AGF / AGF SCOPE 1.15 (preliminary weighted TV audience data).
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