The influencer football startup co-founded by German World Cup winners is pulling back from its home market as it chases growth and valuation overseas.
The Baller League has reportedly suspended its operations in Germany to focus on its UK and US expansions.
The six-a-side indoor football league, founded in 2024 by German footballers Mats Hummels, Lukas Podolski and former DAZN CEO Thomas de Buhr, informed stakeholders of the decision to suspend its German league last week.
In a statement to German media outlet DWDL.de, Baller League said it will “pause” activities in Germany to prioritise markets which better support its growth.
The league recently concluded its second season in the UK and is preparing to launch in the US, with backing from huge names including streamer IShowSpeed, Brazilian football legend Ronaldinho and sprinter Usain Bolt.
Baller League International told DWDL.de that while Germany “will always remain an important part of the Baller League,” the market “currently lacks the size and structural conditions necessary to support the company’s long term goals.”
Insider Sport has approached Baller League for comment.
Chasing a billion valuation
Despite the pause in Germany, the Baller League’s ambitions remain as big as ever. Managing Director Felix Starck said on the OMR podcast last year: “We’ll easily have a billion-dollar valuation next year. I’d stake my reputation on it.”
The league has attracted investor interest through its focus on younger audiences, shorter matches and heavy use of influencers and celebrities. Speaking to Insider Sport at the end of last year, investor 885 Capital said the model mirrors a broader shift in sports consumption.
“When you combine high-tempo competition with creator involvement and immersive production, you don’t just entertain – you build a community that participates in the sport rather than just watching it,” said co-head Alex Rotter. “This shift will intensify in 2026.”
The emphasis on the UK and US suggests Germany may no longer fit the league’s commercial roadmap, with both other markets offering larger influencer ecosystems, greater commercial upside and, in the US case, the added momentum of the 2026 FIFA World Cup.
A sign of more to come?
The Baller League’s financial performance remains unclear, though the league is understood to still be unprofitable. Starck has previously claimed the competition has overtaken the Premier League among 16–28-year-olds, saying the top flight is “not even close” in terms of live viewership, though no supporting data was made public.
It was this claim which prompted Insider Sport‘s Kieran O’Connor to question the league’s long term sustainability and in an op-ed he argued Baller League’s audience is attached more to personalities than to the product itself.
Traditional sports build loyalty around clubs, cities and history, O’Connor wrote, while the Baller League depends on influencers who can leave at any time.
“It’s a league built on borrowed attention and the moment the novelty fades, the stars move on, or the numbers dip too far, the whole thing risks collapsing faster than the clips it produces,” he said.
