The Bundesliga is reportedly set to move its United States broadcasting rights away from ESPN after agreeing a new five-season deal with USA Network and Fandango worth approximately $100 million.
Under the new agreement, all 300-plus Bundesliga matches each season will be shown across USA Network and Fandango, with the two platforms splitting the fixtures exclusively. Matches broadcast on USA Network will not simultaneously be available on Fandango, and vice versa.
USA Network, which already broadcasts selected Premier League matches in the United States, requires access through a cable package or another television provider. Fandango, meanwhile, will reportedly offer its Bundesliga coverage through an ad-supported model without requiring a traditional cable subscription.
The agreement also represents a significant expansion into live sports for Fandango. Traditionally known as a platform for purchasing cinema tickets and accessing films, the service is now set to add live sporting events to its offering for the first time.
Both USA Network and Fandango are part of Versant, which is continuing to develop its sports portfolio by acquiring valuable broadcast properties outside the most expensive tier of American sports rights dominated by competitions such as the NFL and NBA.
Financially, however, the new agreement reportedly represents a considerable reduction in the value of the Bundesliga’s US television rights. The five-year package is worth around $20 million per season, compared with approximately $34 million annually under the previous agreement with ESPN.
The decline comes amid concerns over the Bundesliga’s popularity in the American market, where it reportedly ranks behind several of Europe’s other major domestic leagues in terms of interest.
Several factors have been linked to the league’s struggles to grow its US audience, including Bayern Munich’s dominance of the title race, a limited number of globally recognised clubs, fewer prominent American players, a shortage of internationally renowned stars and a lack of recent success on the international stage.
Bayern Munich have won 13 of the last 14 Bundesliga titles and remain the German league’s most recognisable club in the United States.
Despite the lower financial value, the move to USA Network and Fandango could provide the Bundesliga with a different platform to expand its reach and attract new audiences in the US market.
