Dyn Media, the German sports streaming platform, has acquired a fresh injection of capital after bringing in the DFL German soccer body and retail company Schwarz Group as strategic investors.
The streamer, owned by former DFL managing director Christian Seifert, is looking to boost its domestic and international growth by developing new business areas and enhancing its media technology offering.
The move sees the number of stakeholders in the company rise to four, with Schwarz Group, parent company to supermarket chains Lidl and Kaufland, acquiring a 42.5% stake in Dyn media, while the DFL will hold around 6.5%.
They will join German media company Axel Springer, which co-founded Dyn alongside Seifert, which will retain an equivalent 42.5% stake in the streamer, while Seifert becomes the company’s third-largest shareholder with a 9% stake.
Launched in mid-2023, Dyn Media currently holds rights across sports such as basketball, handball, volleyball, table tennis, and hockey.
Since then, it has streamed over 6,000 matches and reached a cumulative audience of more than 850 million viewers.
Marc Hohenberg, Schwarz Group’s managing director for sports marketing & cross-business, said: “Companies of the Schwarz Group are already reliable partners in handball, football, cycling, and ice hockey—internationally, nationally, and locally.
“As a strategic partner, we will support Dyn Media in achieving its goals with our digital capabilities while jointly offering customers and fans an innovative sports streaming platform.”
Dyn is planning to use the new capital to acquire more sports rights in the German market, expand the platforms’ structure, and enhance its services for leagues, federations, and brands.
The company also has plans to adapt its platform for third-party use and to explore a possible international expansion.
Addressing its investment into the streamer, Steffen Merkel, managing director at DFL, said: “Global media markets are evolving, as is consumer behavior. The successful increase in revenue from the domestic media rights tender ensures a strong economic outlook for the coming years.
“Alongside established media partnerships, it is part of the DFL’s strategy and responsibility to explore new marketing opportunities for the Bundesliga and 2. Bundesliga.
“Through our stake in Dyn Media, we now have direct access to a company whose expertise and modern technical solutions—especially in the production and distribution of media products—we strongly believe in.”
The move comes after it was reported in early 2024 that Dyn was planning a funding round that would value the firm at €60 million ($65.6 million).
At the time, it was reported that Dyn was working with the UniCredit pan-European banking group on bringing interest and investment from both other broadcast firms and financial investors.
However, people familiar with the matter told Bloomberg the latest funding round values Dyn Media at about €80 million ($94 million).
Dyn’s latest rights acquisition saw it land the exclusive pay-TV package in Germany to major International Handball Federation tournaments from 2026 to 2031.
That package includes live coverage of every match from the World Championships, Olympic Qualifiers, at least all Germany matches from the men's and women's youth and junior World Championships, and all Germany games from the men's and women's Beach Handball World Championships in 2026, 2028, and 2030.
