Bundesliga can follow EFL in ditching ESPN in next media rights

The German Bundesliga may be going down a similar path as the EFL because of its partnership with American media agency Relevent. Currently, the German top flight has a rights deal with ESPN through the end of the 2025/26 season. Until then, all games are available on ESPN+ with a small handful of games also on either ESPN or ABC. In September 2024, the Bundesliga signed on with Relevent to help broker its next media rights deal. That agreement could provide clues as to where the Bundesliga rights go next.

The next Bundesliga TV rights in the United States cycle starts with the 2026/27 season. Therefore, the German division is in its penultimate year of the rights deal with ESPN. The two have been working with one another since the 2020/21 campaign, the first for the Bundesliga on ESPN’s family of networks. At the time, ESPN also had the rights to EFL media rights, including the Championship and EFL Cup. However, Relevent helped broker a new deal between the EFL and CBS which started ahead with the 2024/25 season.

The Bundesliga could follow suit, and there are several trends to point to the league finding a new home. For one, ESPN has gradually moved away from soccer rights since former ESPN President John Skipper left the company. Skipper, who was a noted soccer fan, helped build up the soccer rights portfolio within ESPN that, at one time, included the World Cup, Premier League, LaLiga, the Bundesliga, and the EFL, among others.

Relevent has an existing relationship with CBS, as seen with the deal involving the EFL. That could help get a foot in the door for the Bundesliga with what has become arguably the most important broadcaster for American soccer fans. German teams already feature on CBS via UEFA club competitions. Adding one of the most competitive domestic leagues in Europe would fit CBS’s aims.

Can CBS afford to add the Bundesliga after the EFL acquisition?

The challenge for CBS and other broadcasters in the United States is the rising cost of media rights. Although not public, the deal for the EFL rights in the United States was up compared to its previous cycle. The New York Times reported that the EFL had guarantees of $56 million for the Americas, with Relevent keeping a portion of anything more than that. It is likely the EFL earns more than that as part of the deal that runs through the 2027/28 season.

ESPN, however, is stuck in its deal with LaLiga that it overpaid for. That runs through the end of the 2028/29 season. Having paid $1.4 billion for the rights to LaLiga in the United States, it has held ESPN back from getting rights to other major soccer competitions.

Yet, given Relevent’s success in brokering deals with other providers, the Bundesliga may be finding a new home in the 2026/27 campaign.

This is by no means a guarantee in either direction. ESPN will have the rights for the current Bundesliga campaign and the next one. If ESPN recognizes the benefits of having the Bundesliga in its portfolio, it could be more willing to purchase future rights. In fact, it has already expressed interest in renewing the rights. Yet, this comes down to Relevent. The American media agency is responsible for marketing the league in the United States, and it will do its best to receive the biggest return on a future rights deal.

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