The Bundesliga has made one of the most unconventional yet forward-thinking broadcast moves in European football — awarding YouTuber Mark Goldbridge rights to stream 20 live Friday night matches during the 2025-26 season.
Goldbridge, whose real name is Brent Di Cesare, built his reputation through The United Stand, a Manchester United fan channel with more than 2.1 million subscribers. He now fronts That’s Football, a YouTube platform with over 1.3 million followers, which will serve as the home of his Bundesliga coverage.
This marks a seismic shift in the distribution of elite football content: a fan-led creator now holds rights traditionally reserved for networks and established broadcasters.
A Multi-Layered Strategy
The Bundesliga’s decision is part of a wider rights strategy for the UK and Ireland. Alongside Goldbridge’s deal:
- BBC Sport will stream a live Bundesliga match every Friday on iPlayer and digital platforms until 2027.
- Sky Sports continues to carry premium Saturday fixtures.
- Prime Video has secured Sunday coverage, including the DFL Super Cup and relegation play-offs.
Peer Naubert, CEO of Bundesliga International, described this as a deliberate multi-platform approach:
“By combining established broadcasters with digital platforms and content creators, we are taking a progressive step in how top-level football can be experienced.”
Why Mark Goldbridge?
For the Bundesliga, this partnership offers:
- Direct fan engagement: Goldbridge’s content blends live commentary with personality-driven reactions, resonating with younger and digital-native audiences.
- Cultural crossover: Leveraging fan media bridges the gap between traditional broadcasting and influencer-driven sports culture.
- Authenticity: His grassroots fan-driven model delivers an intimacy and relatability that traditional coverage often lacks.
The decision reflects a broader industry trend: sports rights holders are meeting fans where they already are — on YouTube, TikTok, and digital-first ecosystems.
What This Means for Sports & Media?
The Bundesliga’s partnership with Mark Goldbridge is more than a novelty — it is a case study in sports media innovation.
- Rights fragmentation is now an asset, not a weakness: By spreading across Sky, Prime, BBC, and YouTube, the Bundesliga ensures both scale and diversity of audience touchpoints.
- Creators are becoming broadcasters: Fan-led channels offer a new form of storytelling and interactivity that traditional broadcasters cannot replicate.
- Younger audiences = long-term value: Partnering with influencers allows leagues to cultivate future fans who may not engage with conventional TV coverage.
- Community as distribution: Goldbridge’s audience is not just viewers — they are participants in an interactive football culture.
For other leagues, the lesson is clear: integrating creators and non-traditional broadcasters into rights ecosystems is no longer optional — it is an essential pathway to growth.
365247 Takeaway
The Bundesliga’s Goldbridge deal shows that football broadcasting is evolving from networks to networks + creators + communities. The future of sports media is not linear — it’s layered, participatory, and culturally embedded.
At 365247 Consultancy, we help clubs, leagues, and rights holders navigate this shift — from broadcast strategy to influencer integration. If your organisation is exploring how to reach next-gen audiences, connect with us to discuss tailored strategies. Let’s talk.
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IMAGE: Andrew Fox
