DFL cooperates with Relevent Sports

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Will Bayern Munich, Bayer Leverkusen and Co. be playing games in America soon? The stadiums in German professional football are well filled and the TV marketing rights are very popular – but when looking for new sources of income, foreign countries are becoming more and more interesting. The German Football League (DFL) relies on cooperation.

In the future, we will be working with the Relevant Sports Group for the markets in North, South and Central America, including the Caribbean. It is also conceivable that German professional clubs will compete against each other in the USA or Mexico in the foreseeable future. The NFL is leading the way – American football games are now regularly played in Germany.

In the current season, sponsorship partnerships will initially be concluded for the US market; from the 2026/27 season, Relevent Sports will take over the entire marketing of the media rights for the 1st and 2nd Bundesliga on the American continent. Teams in New York and Guadalajara will manage the marketing and PR measures and create content specifically tailored to the respective market.

DFL retains decision-making authority

The DFL emphasizes that the decisions regarding content and marketing strategy as well as the final selection of partners remain its responsibility. The executive board of the DFL eV and the decision-making bodies of the DFL subsidiary Bundesliga International had already approved the plans.

The DFL was advised on the cooperation agreement by a tax team from the law firm Flick Gocke Schaumburg, including the two partners Dr. Carsten Schlotter and Prof. Dr. Vassil Tcherveniachki advised. Alston & Bird advised on aspects of US law. The law firms regularly work together on tax-related transactions – including when the US subsidiary of Bundesliga International was established in 2018.

sts/LTO editorial team

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