Telenet, the Belgian telecoms and media company, has acquired exclusive domestic rights to German soccer’s top-flight Bundesliga for the next four seasons.
The long-term agreement, which covers the 2025-26 to 2028-29 seasons, also includes rights to the second-tier Bundesliga 2.
Having concluded a deal with the league’s Bundesliga International arm, Telenet will show games across its Play Sports channels and platforms.
The tie-up sees the Bundesliga return to Telenet after it previously held broadcast rights for the league in Belgium up until 2018.
Pay-TV broadcaster Eleven Sports had shown the Bundesliga in the market since 2018, with its latest contract expiring at the end of this season.
The top German league features several Belgian players, including RB Leipzig’s Lois Openda, who has been among the top scorers in the competition since he joined the club in 2023.
Former Belgium national team star Vincent Kompany also won the Bundesliga in his first season as head coach of giants Bayern Munich this year.
As well as live matches, Telenet will host regular Bundesliga studio shows and additional shoulder programming.
Peer Naubert, managing director and chief marketing officer of Bundesliga International, said Telenet made “a convincing case through the quality of their production and studio coverage, as well as their premium rights portfolio.”
He added: “The demand for Bundesliga has gone far beyond the traditional TV viewer. Fans are watching on the go – the way they want, when they want it.
“That’s why Telenet, one of Belgium’s biggest telecommunications providers, is the perfect partner for the Bundesliga. With our mix of top Belgian players, not to mention a title-winning coach in Vincent Kompany, we are delighted to be using Telenet’s innovative approach to reach football fans throughout Belgium.”
The deal strengthens Telenet’s soccer rights portfolio, which also includes the UEFA Champions League and Dutch Eredivisie.
Outside of soccer, the telecoms firm recently renewed its deal to show motor racing’s elite Formula 1 series through 2027.
Telenet is 100% owned by Liberty Global, the major US media group that shares a chair, John Malone, with Liberty Media (Liberty Media was spun off from Liberty Global and trades separately).
