Observed Signal · Jun 25, 2026 · Audience Measurement · Source: DWDL · Impact: 1/5 · Sentiment: Neutral
'Kaum zu glauben' open-air boosts NDR ratings
An open-air summer special of the quiz show 'Kaum zu glauben', hosted by Kai Pflaume and produced by NDR, drew strong primetime viewership. The NDR special reached about 1.27 million viewers and an 8.2% market share, outperforming private broadcasters in reach. At the same time MDR's 'Starnacht' attracted roughly 840,000 viewers (5.4%). ZDF was the evening's most-watched broadcaster with 3.24 million viewers (20.9% market share) for 'Ein starkes Team'. The article cites AGF SCOPE / AGF Videoforschung as the source for audience data and reports relative performance for the 14–49 age group, where ZDF registered weaker metrics than some competitors.
Routine German TV ratings update relevant to broadcasters and advertisers but limited wider AdTech/MarTech impact.
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Key Takeaways & Evidence Grounding
- NDR's 'Kaum zu glauben' summer open-air special attracted approximately 1.27 million viewers and achieved an 8.2% market share in primetime.
- MDR's 'Starnacht' reached about 840,000 viewers with a 5.4% market share.
- ZDF led primetime with 'Ein starkes Team', drawing about 3.24 million viewers and a 20.9% market share.
- Article cites AGF SCOPE / AGF Videoforschung as the source for all audience and market-share data.
Connected Companies & Entities
6 Entities mapped“1.27 million people watched in prime time; NDR therefore had in primetime more reach than all private broadcasters....”
“The 'Starnacht' on MDR had 840,000 viewers and a 5.4% market share....”
“Most successful primetime was ZDF, which with 'Ein starkes Team' entertained 3.24 million viewers and a 20.9% market share....”
“The repeat of the crime 'Blutspur Antwerpen' on Das Erste was watched by 1.84 million people and achieved an 11.8% market share....”
“Source for all data in this article, cited as AGF SCOPE 1.9 (AGF Videoforschung)....”
“The article is published on DWDL.de and displays the footer copyright '© DWDL.de GmbH 2001-2026'....”
Related Market Signals & Shifts
Recent verified developments and strategic activity across this market segment.
Köster's 'Fifty-Fifty-Quiz' Debuts Strong on NDR
Fabian Köster's new quiz show 'Fifty-Fifty-Quiz' launched successfully on NDR, drawing an average of 890,000 viewers nationwide and a 7.8% market share in its 22:45 slot. The show benefited from a strong lead-in: 'Kaum zu glauben!' with Kai Pflaume attracted 1.42 million viewers (8.5% market share). NDR's earlier program 'Landpartie' averaged 680,000 viewers. Both quiz formats performed particularly well in NDR's regional broadcast area with market shares of 16.8% and 16.7%, helping NDR (tied with MDR) achieve a 10.0% daily market share among the 'Third' channels. In the late afternoon, the lottery show 'Bingo!' achieved 20.4% market share in Northern Germany and averaged 540,000 viewers nationwide (5.2% among 14–49-year-olds). Audience data source: AGF (AGF SCOPE 1.15).
Kaum zu glauben Returns with Summer Open-Air Special
NDR will revive the quiz show Kaum zu glauben with new episodes beginning in July 2026 and will open the season with a summer open‑air special. The outdoor episode is planned to be produced on 13 June in the Baltic seaside resort Kühlungsborn and is scheduled to air on NDR Fernsehen on 11 July at 20:15. The show, hosted by Kai Pflaume, recently reached up to 1.8 million viewers and keeps its regular panel—Bernhard Hoëcker, Hubertus Meyer‑Burckhardt, Stephanie Stumph and Wincent Weiss. Regular studio episodes resume the day after the special and will air Sundays at 21:45; additional Saturday‑evening editions are planned for late summer and autumn.
ARD's Sträter, ZDF's heute-show Specials Win Ratings
On 17 July 2026, both Germany's public broadcasters achieved strong late‑night ratings with comedy programming. ZDF's "heute-show extra" edition presented by Valerie Niehaus averaged 1.93 million viewers (13.8% market share) and performed strongly with 14–49s (310,000 viewers; 12.7%). A subsequent "heute-show extra – Das Quiz" reached 1.35 million viewers and about 8.1% among younger viewers. Parallel on Das Erste, Torsten Sträter's stage program "Mach mal das große Licht an" drew 1.46 million viewers (11.9%) and 10.1% in the 14–49 demo. Primetime highlights included ARD's Tagesschau (4.01 million; 23.9%) and ZDF's Der Alte (3.83 million; 21.5%). Data source cited is AGF (AGF SCOPE / AGF Videoforschung).
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