The Bundesliga is the latest European league looking to convert a growing US football audience.
The Bundesliga has played its cards in the fight to capture a US audience that has caught World Cup fever, having secured new broadcast partnerships with both USA Sports and Telemundo.
From the 2026/27 season, USA Sports will become the exclusive English-language home of the Bundesliga in the US, broadcasting at least 30 matches per season on USA Network, with the remaining fixtures available to stream for free on Fandango.
The agreement fills a gap left by the league’s previous US media rights deal with ESPN, with the Bundesliga prioritising greater accessibility and audience growth.
“These partnerships with USA Sports and Telemundo mark the next phase of our strategy, combining outstanding distribution with significant commercial opportunity and bringing the Bundesliga closer to more fans across the US than ever before,” said Robin Austermann, Bundesliga Americas Executive Vice President.
The German football league is also targeting the Spanish-speaking audience in the US through its partnership with Telemundo.
As the exclusive Spanish-language broadcaster, Telemundo will show more than 100 matches each season across Telemundo and Universo, with all matches also available through Peacock.
How Bundesliga’s strategy compares to other leagues
The Bundesliga has spent the last few years building the foundations for its growth strategy stateside, opening an office in New York City in 2018 before partnering with Relevent in 2024 to establish Bundesliga Americas.
The Americas division oversees the league’s commercial and development activities across North, Central and South America, including sponsorship opportunities, media rights and fan engagement initiatives.
The latest media deals are being pushed with the 2026 FIFA World Cup in mind, taking advantage of any people looking to support a club after watching the sport for the first time.
“The 2026 World Cup has highlighted the tremendous growth potential of soccer in the U.S.,” said Austermann. “We’ve seen that momentum firsthand, with the number of Bundesliga fans in the U.S. growing by 43% over the past five years.”
However, the Bundesliga is not alone in trying to capitalise on the growing interest in football across North America.
The Premier League is perhaps the most established European football competition in the US, benefiting from a partnership with NBC Sports that runs until 2028. La Liga is also continuing to strengthen its US presence through ESPN until 2029, while Serie A has built its audience through CBS and Paramount+.
Major European leagues continue to benefit from the popularity of the players involved in international competitions, particularly during the World Cup, but domestic football has also looked to take advantage of the momentum built during this year’s tournament.
Major League Soccer is already several years into its US$2.5bn global media partnership with Apple, but has recently increased its presence on terrestrial television via an expanded distribution with Fox Sports which it believes will play a key role in helping the organisation to reach more fans.
Why the US?
The Bundesliga will now be available in more than 80 million US homes following the new broadcast arrangements; but the German football body will still have plenty of work to do to compete with other leagues.
The reason it is willing to compete is that the US has become one of the most attractive growth markets for European football leagues, with the 2026 FIFA World Cup providing an additional catalyst for investment across the sport.
Unlike many established football markets where domestic competitions already dominate fan attention, such as in South America, the US is relatively receptive to international leagues building new audiences.
The US sports market is also one of the most lucrative in the world, with significant sponsorship and commercial potential, with US-based fans used to more brash commercial strategies than others.
A recent example of this took place during the 2026 FIFA World Cup, where Fox introduced advertising during hydration breaks.
Similar approaches have faced resistance in the UK, with ITV previously forced to reconsider its picture-in-picture advertising trial during the Six Nations following a negative response from viewers.
