Bundesliga targets America with Relevent partnership

German football is seeking a slice of the growing American market after Bundesliga chiefs struck a major long-term partnership with US-based sports promotion powerhouse Relevent.

The deal, understood to be for 17 years, will see Relevent market the media rights and work to build the popularity of the Bundesliga and Bundesliga 2 in North America, Central America, South America and the Caribbean.

It is the latest development in an arms race for fans in a booming US market tipped to continue growing as the country hosts next summer’s Fifa Club World Cup and co-hosts the men’s World Cup the following year.

“The American market is currently in an exciting development phase and offers great potential for the Bundesliga,” said Steffen Merkel, CEO of the Deutsche Fussball Liga. 

“It is exactly the right time for such a partnership with the Relevent Sports Group. Together, we will make great strides forward in the marketing of German professional football.”  

The collaboration will also see Relevent help the DFL to attract new commercial partners, create region-specific media content and organise pre-season tours. To do so they plan to build out Bundesliga Americas offices in New York and Mexico.

“This partnership marks a significant step forward in Relevent’s mission to bring the best of international football to audiences in the Americas and help grow the sport,” said the group’s president Boris Gartner.

Bundesliga deal highlights Relevent pivot to media

Relevent, which is part of Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross’s sports portfolio, came to prominence as a promoter of pre-season exhibition matches and tournaments, such as the International Champions Cup.

But in recent years it has increasingly focused on helping European leagues with their internationalisation strategies and in 2018 entered into a joint venture with Spain’s LaLiga to help it market it and its teams in North America.

“Over the last seven years, 90 per cent of our business has been focused on developing value for international football leagues by building LaLiga’s brand, by building the EFL’s brand, through working with Uefa for the Champions League,” Relevent CEO Danny Sillman told City A.M.

“I think [in the future] football will look more like the American sports leagues in terms of viewing themselves as a entertainment and media business and not just a sporting property. 

“And you’re going to see that change over the next several years in terms of the content that’s distributed, the storytelling that’s done, the positioning of players and clubs.

“That’s a result of the success of the American leagues in doing that type of work, and the European leagues have taken note and are interested in continuing to grow their brands globally in terms of consumption.”

Relevent’s pivot to media rights has also seen them hire industry veteran Sean Bratches, the man credited with modernising Formula 1’s broadcast output, as chair. 

Ultimately, the group wants to sell the rights of European leagues within Europe and not just in the US.

“We think we’ve done a nice job organically over the last several years, but we need to take it to the next level,” said Sillman. 

Relevent, Fifa and overseas league games

Relevent has also been at the centre of European leagues’ attempts to stage competitive matches overseas.

Its partnership with LaLiga included plans to organise its first game on foreign soil between Barcelona and Girona in Miami in 2019.

The move was blocked by Fifa and US football chiefs, but Relevent mounted a legal challenge that forced the world governing body to climb down last year and opened the door for such matches to take place in future. 

Fifa is still to rule on the conditions under which the games could be held but Sillman has previously gone on record to say Relevent expect them to happen by 2026.