Deutsche Telekom blindsides pubcasters

Deutsche Telekom has reportedly secured all rights to the 2024 UEFA European Championship in Germany, outbidding ARD and ZDF, which have traditionally carried the football tournament.

The Deutsche Telekom move is unprecedented

While the final agreement between the telco giant and UEFA has yet to be signed, it’s all but a done deal and an announcement is expected in the coming weeks, according to German news agency DPA.

As part of its MagentaTV streaming service, Deutsche Telekom offers Magenta Sport to subscribers and non-subscribers alike.

ARD and ZDF will again broadcast the European Championship in 2020 when the tournament is held in 12 cities across Europe. The 2024 tournament, however, will be held entirely in Germany, making ARD and ZDF’s loss particularly severe. The broadcasters might not ultimately go out completely empty handed, however, as Deutsche Telekom is considering sub-licensing some matches, according to German newspaper Tagesspiegel.

ARD and ZDF paid an estimated €150m (US$164m) for the Euro 2020 rights and the price for the 2024 tournament is likely higher, making sub-licensing deals probable.

Deutsche Telekom could choose to sell game rights to rival broadcasters, however, such as RTL, which has increased its commitment to football in recent years and broadcasts the European Championship and World Cup qualifiers, which ARD and ZDF had previously carried.

Deutsche Telekom is expected to stream most of the tournament on its MagentaTV OTT service. It will be the first time that the European Championship is broadcast entirely over the Internet – a major change in how football matches have traditionally been watched in Germany, particularly for older fans.

However, Germany’s Rundfunkstaatsvertrag, or Interstate Broadcasting Agreement, which regulates the country’s television and radio licensing, mandates that during the European Championship, the opening match, games involving the German team, semi-finals and the final must be broadcast on free TV. Whether free streaming on the Deutsche Telekom platform would meet the necessary criteria remains open, the Tagesspiegel report points out.

Deutsche Telekom has declined to comment on the reports and representatives from ARD and ZDF have likewise remained tight-lipped, saying only that they could not comment on an ongoing tendering process. The German Football Association and UEFA have also declined comment.

ARD and ZDF have in the past always broadcast the European Championship. Commercial broadcasters have been increasingly active in recent years, however. Sat.1 was the first commercial channel to carry some World Cup matches in the 2002 tournament in Japan and South Korea. RTL likewise broadcast some games in the 2006 and 2010 tournaments in Germany and South Africa. Pay TV satcaster Sky and its predecessor Premiere also acquired key matches from 2002 to 2010. ARD and ZDF have secured rights for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.

Deutsche Telekom has until now only acquired minor sports rights. It offers the Basketball Bundesliga and the German Ice Hockey League as well as live games from minor football leagues on its pay service, although it did show the most recent FIBA Basketball World Cup free on MagentaTV.

The European Championship is certain to attract more MagentaTV subscribers.