Haruka Gruber from DAZN: The Future Strategy of the Streamer

Haruka, how will DAZN position itself on the German sports streaming market in 2025?

Haruka Gruber: We are now the market leader in sports broadcasting – not only among streamers, but also compared to traditional TV broadcasters. We are the only provider to broadcast both the Bundesliga and the UEFA Champions League. We also have rights to the NFL, NBA, women's soccer, martial arts with the UFC, the biggest boxing matches and many other premium sports. Our aim is to deliver the most comprehensive sports experience – in terms of both quality and quantity.

Exclusivity, digitality and a young target group: this is what makes DAZN so successful

 

What is the strategic difference between you and platforms like Sky or public broadcasting?

Haruka: There are four main pillars. Firstly, exclusivity for important rights. Secondly, our young target group – on average in their mid-30s and therefore significantly younger than in traditional TV. Thirdly, our purely digital infrastructure, which allows us to offer innovations such as e-commerce, betting and interactive fan services like the FanZone. And fourthly, we are the only global sports streaming service.

Which rights have recently made a particular contribution to your positioning?

Haruka: The Bundesliga and UEFA Champions League as flagship rights, of course. But also the NFL, the Women's Bundesliga, the FIFA Club World Cup – all of these help us to not only reach mainstream viewers, but also appeal to highly segmented target groups. This is a great advantage, especially in a time of fragmented media usage.

How important are these niche target groups for DAZN?

Haruka: Very important. Darts, women's soccer and American football each appeal to their own, often younger or, in the case of darts, slightly older communities. Women's soccer is watched 50 percent by women, while NFL viewers tend to be younger. This results in a matrix: We know exactly which target group we are addressing with which right – that helps with format development, marketing and monetization.

Are there any sports that are underestimated in Germany but have potential for you?

Haruka: Women's soccer. For a long time, we doubted whether it didn't have the same coverage problem in everyday league life as handball or ice hockey. But we can see that: Even matches without German participation in the Women's Champions League reach up to 200,000 viewers in our country. That's more than some men's handball clubs manage on TV.

Fringe sports such as darts play a major role in DAZN's strategy

 

Another example is darts – you share the rights with Sport1. How do you rate such arrangements?

Haruka: We think it makes sense. Sport1 made darts popular on free TV – we also benefit from this early, broad attention today. The hype surrounding darts would probably never have arisen in this form if the sport had only taken place behind a paywall from the start. Today, the interest is so great that darts can also support itself as a paid service. In our opinion, this combination of reach through free TV and monetization through streaming is a sustainable model – especially for sports that have yet to establish themselves.

How do you assess whether a rights package is worthwhile?

Haruka: We look at relevance and profitability. Relevance means: how many events per year, how big is the potential reach? With a subscription model, events that take place regularly are often more valuable than individual tournaments where demand is only really high once a year. We check how many new subscriptions we expect, how many customers we retain and how well advertising can be marketed – in American football, there are even specially scheduled breaks for advertising. We end up with a revenue figure that we compare against the required license costs.

What effect has the price trend for sports rights had recently?

Haruka: The idea that sports rights are becoming more and more expensive was true for a long time – but the market has calmed down in the meantime. It has found a healthier middle ground in which prices are scrutinized more critically and evaluated more realistically. We can see that the wheel is not turning endlessly. Instead, more flexible models are gaining in importance – such as co-exclusivity or shared rights, where several providers share a package.

How important is planning security for you when it comes to rights – or do you prefer flexibility?

Haruka: A healthy mix is crucial. The Bundesliga rights currently run until 2029 – that's a long period in the fast-moving media business and gives us planning security. At the same time, other rights such as the Champions League have shorter terms or are re-tendered on a staggered basis. This creates a strategic grid: even if we were to lose a key right such as the Bundesliga, we would still be present on the market with other top competitions such as the Champions League or the NFL – where we have been offering the NFL Game Pass for a total of ten years since the start in 2023. This strategy gives us a certain degree of flexibility.

FanZone and Creator:inside: DAZN will focus on community in the future

 

And what about interactivity and community elements in live formats?

Haruka: We have developed our own tool with the FanZone: A QR code appears during the game, which you can use to chat live with hosts, vote or answer quiz questions. This is unique worldwide and is also very successful here in Germany – a real added value compared to passive consumption. Fans can look forward to new features for the FIFA Club World Cup 2025 and the new Bundesliga season and can also win unique prizes.

What role do creators and influencers play at DAZN?

Haruka: A growing one. With formats like the Infinity League, we combine sports legends with influencers and fans. From our point of view, we are the only platform that really brings the different worlds together: the mainstream Champions League fan, the NBA or women's soccer fan, but also the fan who follows content creators on TikTok [&] Co. We unite such different target groups under one roof.