The Bundesliga has strengthened its presence in Asia with a new free-to-air (FTA) rights deal in Japan with sports streaming platform Abema for the 2025-26 season. The agreement will see Abema broadcast two Bundesliga matches per week, alongside highlights and original programming tailored to Japanese fans.
Deal Details
Coverage begins this weekend with Freiburg vs. Augsburg and Mainz vs. Cologne, followed by Stuttgart vs. Borussia Monchengladbach and Wolfsburg vs. Mainz in the second round of fixtures.
A key emphasis of the partnership is content focused on clubs with Japanese players, reflecting the Bundesliga’s strategy of connecting with local audiences through player-driven storytelling.
The deal complements the global rights held by DAZN, which has secured exclusive coverage of all nine Bundesliga matches per gameweek across 34 rounds in Japan from 2025-26 through 2027-28.
Abema’s Role in Bundesliga Coverage
This is not Abema’s first foray into the Bundesliga. The platform previously aired:
- 104 matches during the 2023-24 season under a sub-licensing agreement with Sky PerfecTV
- 45 matches in the 2022-23 season, initially testing its digital-first Bundesliga coverage
With this new direct deal, Abema strengthens its role in sports broadcasting by offering free access to high-profile fixtures, expanding the Bundesliga’s footprint in one of Asia’s most football-engaged markets.
Japanese Connection to the Bundesliga
The Bundesliga has a long history with Japanese talent. For the 2025-26 season, 14 Japanese players are part of Bundesliga and Bundesliga 2 squads, including:
- Hiroki Itō (Bayern Munich)
- Ritsu Dōan (Eintracht Frankfurt)
- Kaishu Sano (Mainz)
- Yuito Suzuki (Freiburg)
- Shuto Machino (Borussia Monchengladbach)
Since its inception in 1963-64, the league has featured 48 Japanese players, more than any other top-five European league. This legacy gives the Bundesliga a unique cultural and commercial edge in the Japanese market.
Global Rights Expansion
The Abema agreement is part of a wider strategy by Bundesliga International, the league’s commercial arm, to expand across Asia and beyond. Recent deals include:
- Viettel in Vietnam (state-owned telecom and media giant)
- PPTV in Thailand (FTA channel)
- United Media in Southeast Europe, with a four-year extension covering nine territories
- Sky Italia in Italy with a renewed domestic broadcast agreement
Domestically, the Bundesliga remains anchored with Sky Deutschland and DAZN as live broadcast partners.
Why This Matters?
At 365247 Media, this deal highlights three key trends in sports media strategy:
- Local Heroes as Market Catalysts
With 14 Japanese players active, the Bundesliga leverages local talent to build emotional connections, making FTA exposure highly valuable in driving fan engagement. - FTA + OTT as a Growth Formula
By pairing DAZN’s premium subscription model with Abema’s free-to-air reach, the Bundesliga ensures both broad visibility and monetization. This dual-channel strategy maximizes audience capture. - Asia as a Strategic Priority
The Bundesliga continues to outpace rivals in Asia through localized deals and digital-first activations. This positions it as the most culturally integrated European league in the Japanese market, ahead of La Liga, Serie A, and even the Premier League.
The Bundesliga-Abema partnership is more than just a rights deal — it’s a calculated step to deepen ties with Japanese fans by combining accessibility, local relevance, and digital innovation. With DAZN ensuring premium coverage and Abema offering free entry points, the league is setting a blueprint for global sports rights strategies in Asia.
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