RTL Deutschland secures Warner Bros. Discovery and DFB-Pokal deals

RTL Deutschland introduced vital content material enlargement by way of two strategic partnerships in January 2025. The German media firm deepened its relationship with Warner Bros. Discovery by way of a complete quantity deal whereas securing unique reside broadcasting rights for 15 prime matches of the lads’s DFB-Pokal match.

The Warner Bros. Discovery settlement grants RTL Deutschland in depth rights to present cinema hits, high-profile US collection, and iconic titles from the Warner Bros. Discovery library. Well-liked franchises together with the DC Prolonged Universe, Harry Potter, The Matrix, and The Massive Bang Principle will develop into obtainable throughout RTL Deutschland’s linear channels and streaming service RTL+.

The amount deal contains unique entry to anticipated blockbusters. Mickey 17, directed by Oscar-winning filmmaker Bong Joon-ho and starring Robert Pattinson, represents one main acquisition. A Minecraft Film that includes Jason Momoa and Jack Black, alongside Superman directed by James Gunn, full the high-profile additions to RTL Deutschland’s content material portfolio.

“The brand new quantity deal totally helps our Enhance and Shield technique,” says Andreas Fischer, Chief Working Officer of RTL Deutschland. “Warner Bros. Discovery’s complete vary of hit productions is a implausible addition to our personal robust manufacturers. This can allow us to considerably improve the vary and frequency of movie and collection highlights for our viewers – each on our free-to-air TV channels and on RTL+.”

Promoting collaboration emerges

The partnership extends past content material licensing into promoting operations. Ranging from 2026, RTL Zwei and Warner Bros. Discovery Germany will set up joint gross sales operations for his or her TV and digital inventories in Germany. The newly shaped promoting gross sales home El Cartel Brothers will function from Munich, creating unified advertising and marketing alternatives throughout each organizations’ media properties.

This promoting collaboration displays broader traits in European media consolidation. RTL Group’s digital advertising revenue surged 27% in the first half of 2025, demonstrating profitable transformation towards programmatic and streaming-based promoting options whereas conventional TV promoting declined 6.9%.

The promoting expertise integration builds upon RTL’s existing partnerships with ProSiebenSat.1, the place each firms mixed their respective adtech firms Digital Minds and Smartclip to problem US dominance within the promoting expertise house.

DFB-Pokal broadcasting rights secured

The second main announcement entails DFB-Pokal broadcasting rights. Beginning within the 2026/27 season, RTL Deutschland will broadcast 15 prime matches of the lads’s DFB-Pokal reside on RTL and RTL+. The deal additionally contains extra spotlight rights, increasing protection of the annual knockout cup competitors.

The DFB-Pokal options golf equipment from the primary and second German leagues in an elimination match format. Often known as the German Cup, the competitors has constructed status for emotional storytelling by way of underdog victories and dramatic late-game developments. RTL Deutschland’s acquisition brings these moments to free-to-air tv audiences.

“We make large moments seen for everybody and convey the fascination of the DFB-Pokal to free-to-air TV with highly effective reside occasions – accessible, emotional, for everybody,” says Inga Leschek, Chief Content material Officer of RTL Deutschland.

This acquisition follows RTL Deutschland’s earlier buy of DFB-Pokal highlights rights in 2024. The expanded protection enhances RTL Deutschland’s current soccer portfolio, which incorporates German nationwide staff matches, weekly match and spotlight rights from the two. Bundesliga, plus Europa League and Premier League protection.

Strategic context and market positioning

These content material acquisitions happen throughout vital transformation in German media consumption patterns. Video streaming overtook traditional television viewing for the first time in Germany, with 87% of Germans aged 16 and above now utilizing video streaming companies in comparison with 86% watching conventional broadcast tv.

The timing coincides with RTL Group’s broader enlargement technique. RTL Group announced the €150 million acquisition of Sky Deutschland in June 2025, combining each firms’ premium content material choices to create a unified leisure enterprise with roughly 11.5 million paying subscribers throughout the DACH area.

RTL Deutschland has strengthened distribution partnerships all through 2024 and 2025. The company extended its streaming partnership with Deutsche Telekom until 2030, integrating RTL+ Premium into MagentaTV plans. Moreover, RTL+ became available on Sky Stream’s IPTV platform in August 2024, increasing viewers attain by way of cross-platform distribution.

Technical infrastructure developments

RTL Group has invested considerably in promoting expertise capabilities to assist content material distribution and monetization. RTL AdAlliance launched its AdManager platform in March 2025, offering self-service promoting options for businesses and types throughout European markets.

The platform permits advertisers to independently handle Complete Video campaigns with full flexibility and management. The technology integration allows sophisticated programmatic campaigns with real-time bidding and superior viewers segmentation, addressing business traits towards automated promoting prioritizing effectivity and concentrating on precision.

RTL Group operates Smartclip, an promoting expertise subsidiary offering programmatic promoting options throughout media properties. In March 2025, RTL Hungary partnered with Smartclip to undertake Smartx, the corporate’s ad-server and supply-side platform, enhancing concentrating on capabilities and marketing campaign optimization for advertisers.

Monetary implications and market dynamics

The content material investments assist RTL Deutschland’s strategic positioning amid rising competitors from worldwide streaming platforms. With international streaming giants like Netflix, Amazon Prime, and Disney+ dominating subscriber numbers, regional gamers should consolidate and purchase premium content material to stay aggressive.

RTL Group reported €1,405 million in whole promoting income throughout all platforms, with digital promoting representing 16.4% of whole promoting income, up from 12.5% within the first half of 2024. The corporate’s streaming companies generated vital promoting income progress, pushed by 7.232 million paying subscribers throughout RTL+ in Germany and Hungary, plus M6+ in France.

The German digital promoting market demonstrated outstanding progress, with European digital ads reaching €118.9 billion with 16% progress in 2024. Linked TV promoting represents a major progress alternative, with programmatic promoting progress reaching 72% as entrepreneurs shift budgets towards Linked TV platforms.

Business consolidation traits

These bulletins mirror broader European media consolidation traits as firms search scale to compete with international expertise giants. Conventional tv loses floor to streaming in Germany, with 77% of Germans now utilizing video streaming companies weekly, creating urgency for established broadcasters to adapt enterprise fashions.

The promoting expertise collaboration between RTL Deutschland and Warner Bros. Discovery Germany demonstrates how content material partnerships more and more embrace expertise integration parts. This strategy permits unified marketing campaign administration throughout a number of media properties whereas offering advertisers with streamlined entry to numerous viewers segments.

European media firms face strain to attain scale quickly to compete successfully towards American gamers in internet marketing reminiscent of Google and Meta, plus Linked TV rivals together with Netflix, Disney+, Prime Video, and YouTube. The RTL-Warner Bros. Discovery partnership creates operational synergies whereas sustaining aggressive differentiation by way of premium content material acquisition.

Market competitors and viewers growth

The DFB-Pokal acquisition positions RTL Deutschland competitively in sports activities broadcasting, an more and more useful content material class for viewers engagement and promoting income technology. Dwell sports activities content material offers appointment viewing alternatives that streaming platforms worth for subscriber retention and promoting stock monetization.

RTL Deutschland’s soccer portfolio enlargement creates complete protection spanning nationwide staff matches, league competitions, and cup tournaments. This built-in strategy permits cross-promotional alternatives whereas offering advertisers with constant entry to engaged sports activities audiences all through a number of competitions and seasons.

The Warner Bros. Discovery content material integration helps RTL Deutschland’s dual-platform technique, distributing premium leisure content material throughout each conventional broadcast channels and streaming companies. This strategy addresses numerous viewers consumption preferences whereas maximizing content material funding returns by way of a number of distribution channels.

Future strategic implications

These content material acquisitions set up basis for RTL Deutschland’s competitors towards worldwide streaming platforms whereas sustaining robust conventional broadcasting positions. The mixed Warner Bros. Discovery partnership and DFB-Pokal rights create differentiated programming lineup supporting subscriber acquisition and retention methods.

The promoting expertise collaboration part displays business evolution towards built-in content material and promoting options. Publishers more and more require unified expertise platforms supporting marketing campaign administration throughout linear tv, streaming platforms, and digital properties to fulfill advertiser calls for for simplified cross-platform execution.

RTL Deutschland’s strategic strategy demonstrates how established European broadcasters adapt to altering market circumstances by way of content material funding, expertise integration, and partnership growth. The bulletins place the corporate for sustained competitors towards international streaming platforms whereas preserving conventional broadcasting income streams.

Timeline

Abstract

Who: RTL Deutschland, Warner Bros. Discovery, and the German Soccer Affiliation (DFB), with key executives Andreas Fischer (Chief Working Officer) and Inga Leschek (Chief Content material Officer) of RTL Deutschland

What: Two strategic content material offers – an expanded quantity settlement with Warner Bros. Discovery for movies and collection, plus unique reside broadcasting rights for 15 prime DFB-Pokal matches

When: Introduced in January 2025, with Warner Bros. Discovery content material obtainable instantly and DFB-Pokal broadcasts starting within the 2026/27 season

The place: Germany, with content material distributed throughout RTL Deutschland’s linear channels and RTL+ streaming service, plus new promoting gross sales home El Cartel Brothers working from Munich

Why: To strengthen RTL Deutschland’s aggressive place towards worldwide streaming platforms by way of premium content material acquisition whereas supporting the corporate’s “Enhance and Shield” technique amid German media market transformation the place streaming has overtaken conventional tv viewing