analysis
Sale of media rights
After investor Blackstone withdrew: How much damage has the Bundesliga suffered?
BVB keeper Gregor Kobel kicks tennis balls off the grass that fans threw onto the grass in protest against the DFL’s investor plans
© Bernd Thissen / DPA
Financial investor Blackstone has withdrawn from the bidding process for the media rights of the Bundesliga. Apparently the fan’s protests and the disagreement among the clubs played a role in the decision. Is the first league difficult to get across?
A remarkable spectacle has been going on in German Bundesliga stadiums for weeks: at some point during a game, fans in the corners throw tennis balls or chocolate balls (more rarely: lemons) onto the field. They chant “Shit DFL”, the game is interrupted by the referee. After a certain time, the game continues, depending on how persistently the Ultras throw the tennis balls. Stylistically, the banners of the Hannover 96 Ultras in the game against HSV were the ones they hated 96 managing director Martin Kind in the crosshairs showed the low point. Leverkusen fans delayed the kick-off of the top game against Bayern Munich last weekend by throwing carnival-style candy onto the lawn and displaying a banner with the inscription: “The DFL has nothing to do here Kamellen.” The top duel was particularly important for the protest: it was broadcast in more than 200 countries.
What is bringing fans to the barricades is the German Football League’s plan to sell part of the media rights to an investor. In simple terms it looks like this: Up to eight percent of the shares are to be sold for 20 years. The DFL is hoping for revenue of up to one billion euros, which will mainly be invested in digital marketing. When the 36 professional clubs in the first and second league voted, the two-thirds majority came down to just 24 votes. The supporters see this as an attack on the special German fan culture and further commercialization. What angers them even more: the managing director of Hannover 96, Martin Kind, who they deeply hate, voted yes, even though he only had a mandate from the club for a no vote. The supporters see this as a violation of the 50+1 rule. It means that the club always retains the majority of votes in the outsourced professional departments.
DFL should take protests seriously
The fact that the DFL should take the protests seriously is shown by the withdrawal of investor Blackstone, which became known on Tuesday. Finally, there were two bidders in the running: the two investment companies CVC Capital Partners and Blackstone. It is said that the reason the latter withdrew from the bidding process is due to the fan protests. “We are celebrating this as an interim success,” said the chairman of the fan alliance Unser Kurve, Jost Peter, to the German Press Agency on Wednesday. The hesitant behavior of many German clubs, which also have difficulty attracting an investor, also contributed. On the one hand, the clubs fear the power of the fans (or take their interests into account), but they also see little financial benefit because they don’t get enough of the cake. There is also a general accusation: the DFL process was opaque, which contributed to the messy situation.
For the DFL, Blackstone’s withdrawal is another defeat on the way to generating new income. “A pitch-black day for the DFL. The last bidder can now dictate the price, plus the sword of Damocles of a possible new vote. And as the cherry on the cake, the polls that destroy the myth that only a radical minority would protest here,” blasphemed the editor-in-chief of the football magazine “11Freunde” on X, Philipp Köster. Either way, the Bundesliga is damaged.
The DFL has already shown itself to be willing to compromise in order to save the entire project. Last year it presented an initial investment model that went much further. She wanted to sell a larger share of the media rights for up to two billion euros. The project failed due to resistance from the clubs, among whom no majority was achieved. The slimmed-down version was more popular and was narrowly accepted.
The situation is messed up
The smaller deal is now also in danger because fans started an unprecedented wave of protests, see above. It remains to be seen whether the second attempt to bring an investor on board will work. The final decision rests solely with the DFL Presidium. The deal is expected to be completed by the end of March. How this will be pushed through against the will of the fans is not entirely clear.
In addition, the DFL has recently acted helplessly. After the protests first flared up, she again offered the active fans talks, which they politely declined. They demand a second vote. The DFL gave in to the demand, but only wants to demand a simple majority. It is easy to see that she fears that a two-thirds majority will not be achieved. With all the disadvantages for German football.
Apparently the two DFL managing directors Steffen Merkel and Marc Lenz don’t have any other brilliant ideas. Hans-Joachim Watzke, managing director of Borussia Dortmund and head of the DFL supervisory board, can only emphasize that he is in favor of the investor deal. Power words like those from Bayern boss Jan-Christian Dreesen (“I have the feeling that in some ultra scenes content and the discussion of facts no longer play a role”) tend to impress fans little.
The situation is messed up. The question remains what the fans actually want. Their positions appear to be rather diffuse. What happens if the clubs and the DFL comply with the demand for a second, open vote with a two-thirds majority and the investor vote is in favor? Even on the fan side you can’t say what happens next. “(…) If, under these conditions, the result is still in favor of investor entry, I don’t think it will be accepted uncritically, but then you have a lot of factual arguments on your side to accept it, because that’s a “It was a democratic process,” says fan activist and “kicker columnist Helen Breit from Freiburg. The positions seem irreconcilable. Not a good outlook for the Bundesliga.