NENT, Bundesliga sign 9 market deal to 2029
April 27, 2021
Nordic Entertainment Group (NENT Group), the Nordic streaming company, and Bundesliga International, a subsidiary of the DFL Deutsche Fußball Liga, have extended their media rights partnership until 2029 in nine European markets.
Football fans in Sweden, Norway, Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland will be able to follow global football stars and local heroes in the Bundesliga and Bundesliga 2 every week on NENT Group’s Viaplay streaming service, along with studio programming and local language commentary.
NENT Group will show more than 300 live Bundesliga and Bundesliga 2 matches every season. The deal also includes the exclusive rights to the German Supercup and the Bundesliga relegation play-offs.
The deal marks the longest media rights agreement that either NENT Group or Bundesliga International has ever entered into, highlighting the strong relationship between the two organisations. Over the duration of the contract, the Bundesliga will become a cornerstone of NENT Group’s sports streaming offering, and both parties will seek to grow the Bundesliga fan base even further throughout NENT Group’s broadcast markets.
Anders Jensen, NENT Group President and CEO, said: “The Bundesliga scores so highly in excitement, quality and fan involvement. Viaplay can now bring supporters in our new and established markets even closer to their heroes every week until the end of the decade. This historic partnership across nine countries is exactly what we are aiming for – long contracts that allow us to take a long-term perspective on developing the service for existing and, very importantly, future fans. This shows our long-term commitment to Bundesliga football with whom we are very proud to be partners. This takes NENT Group one step closer to realising our ambition of being the European streaming champion.”
Robert Klein, Bundesliga International CEO, added: “By committing to this long-term agreement, we are once again reaffirming our strategic approach to work hand-in-hand with our partners and deliver a world-class product to fans throughout Europe. Given NENT Group’s streaming ambitions and attitude towards innovation, which reflects our own ethos, NENT Group and the Bundesliga are building on the foundations of a great partnership, and we look forward to many more exciting moments together in the coming years.”
Viaplay launched in Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania on March 9th and will be available in Poland from August 2021.
In the Nordic region, NENT Group holds rights to the Bundesliga (SE/NO/DK/FI/IS) to 2029; Premier League (SE/NO/DK/FI), IIHF Ice Hockey World Championship (SE/NO/DK/FI/IS) and national football team qualifiers (SE/IS) to 2028; NHL (SE/NO/DK/FI/IS) and FIS winter sports (SE/NO/DK/FI) to 2026; and UEFA Champions League (DK/IS), UEFA Europa League (SE/NO/FI/IS) and Formula 1 (SE/NO/DK/FI/IS) to 2024.
In the Baltic countries and Poland, NENT Group’s sports rights include Bundesliga to 2029; NHL to 2026 (EST/LAT/LTU); UEFA Champions League (EST/LAT/LTU) and UEFA Europa League (EST/LAT/LTU/POL) to 2024; and Formula 1 (EST/LAT/LTU).