An estimated 7.49 million watched the Germans’ quarter-final loss on Wednesday night time. handball participant World Cup in opposition to France on ZDF. with a market share of 26.5 %, it ranks first in the every day rating of the most watched TV reveals. For Sportfive CEOs Henrik Schieforstnormal marketer of his company Handball World Championship That is, such numbers are like music to the ears. In the Abendblatt, Schieforst talks about the rising enthusiasm for handball, the nonetheless large distance to soccer and HSV.
Hamburger Abendblatt: Mr. Schieforst, once you have a look at the ARD and ZDF TV scores for the Handball World Cup, you need to instantly be in a superb temper, proper?
Hendrik Schieforst: Absolutely. In latest years, we’ve got at all times had nice alternatives in main handball tournaments, and this yr it was even higher. However, we don’t restrict ourselves to the advertising of the World Cup in Germany, we additionally have a look at TV scores in different nations. For instance, in Denmark, a Danish handball recreation just lately had a 73 % market share on community tv. This is unimaginable, in Germany he was in the “Schwarzwaldklinik” (laughs).
You are energetic globally, the World Handball Championship is not adopted as enthusiastically in all places because it is in Europe. In which nations and continents does this sport not work effectively for you as a marketer?
Schifforst: Handball is nonetheless primarily a European topic. Other continents observe swimsuit, however the sport is most outstanding in Europe and the Scandinavian and Eastern European markets. Germany is additionally a key market that has traditionally thrived and is now making huge good points in the scores.
Until the semi-finals, solely the German video games have been broadcast free on public tv, the relaxation have been streamed on-line for a price on sportdeutschland.television. How glad are you with this part?
Schifforst: Streaming platforms have gotten radically extra fascinating, and the media panorama is more and more fragmented. With Dyn Media, the Handball Bundesliga will use a streaming supplier as a substitute of Sky from the summer time. Regardless of streaming, it is nonetheless essential for us to have fastened suppliers like ARD and ZDF, as they make up the bulk of the scores. Many streaming platforms, comparable to Sportdeutschland.television, will not be but firmly established in client consciousness and utilization conduct. Handball nonetheless must develop considerably in order for all World Cup matches to be broadcast on public tv like soccer. For now, the sport is not sufficiently big for ARD and ZDF to alter their whole applications completely.
You are accountable not just for the distribution of TV rights for the Handball World Cup, but additionally for all promoting companions that seem on the LED boards, on the ground of the corridor or on the interview partitions. How fashionable are these promoting spots amongst corporations?
Schifforst: We needed to contact the corporations ourselves and actively market them, however the response was overwhelming. We have a quantity of companions that we already know from our advertising cooperation with the German Handball Association (DHB) and at the moment are selling at the World Cup. But we received many new companions. It helped us that the majority of the World Handball Championship happened with out soccer. This event additionally works very effectively as a counter to the FIFA World Cup in Qatar. The World Handball Championship is a lot nearer and extra actual to the individuals than the World Cup in Qatar. Now it is about bringing that enthusiasm to the Handball Bundesliga.
That’s what they are saying at the World Handball Championship.
Schifforst: That’s proper (laughs). But I imagine it would occur anyway. All the theaters in Germany have been packed, and for the first time there was an actual competitors between Sky and Dyn Media for TV rights. This is about the handball product.
If the World Cup is an enormous success for you, why do not you additionally become involved in the German handball league on an even bigger scale?
Schifforst: Sky Handball Bundesliga viewing figures are good, however inferior to the World Cup. We count on so much from the new tv contract with Dyn Media beginning this summer time. When it involves advertising golf equipment, we deal with European handball, so we’ve got solely been working with THW Kiel and Füchsen Berlin thus far. In the sponsorship and hospitality sector, THW has gross sales in the excessive seven-figure vary. Such values will be in comparison with a soccer staff in the second division. The advertising of handball golf equipment in the Bundesliga wouldn’t be very promising for us at the second. Simply put, we promote entry – and Sky definitely lags behind the public broadcasters in phrases of numbers. Every at times there are particular person Bundesliga video games which can be broadcast by ARD or ZDF and produce wonderful scores. It would assist the sport if there have been extra of these free focus video games. As far as I do know, this is additionally lined in the new rights contract with Dyn Media.
Fans complain about having to purchase new subscriptions all the time to have the ability to watch all the sports activities. Why do you suppose this passage is constructive?
Schifforst: Any sort of media helps us so much in advertising because it will increase our attain. I perceive that viewers generally get upset, however this development is unstoppable. New suppliers want time for viewers to combine into their utilization routine. The foremost problem right here is to persuade the aged goal group to modify to a brand new supplier. Former DFL Managing Director Christian Seifert and Axel Springer wouldn’t have joined Dyn Media in the Handball Bundesliga if they didn’t imagine in the product.
Handball sports activities With Verein Hamburg, Hamburg has one other Bundesliga membership that desires to play once more at the European stage in the future. Do you suppose the group is fascinating for collaboration?
Schifforst: We have beforehand marketed the HSV Handball. After the chapter in the third and second leagues, we supported the membership in its advertising restoration, however then determined that the membership should first stabilize additional. We have a superb relationship and I feel working with HSVH may turn into a problem for us once more in the future if they’re much more profitable in the sport. Of course, either side would have an interest in it.
You have been working with HSV soccer gamers since 1998. The collaboration ended briefly final yr when Thomas Wüstefeld was promoted to the board of administrators. Wuestefeld wished not less than a renegotiation of the contracts, and maybe an entire annulment. Did that change once more after Wuestefeld resigned?
Schifforst: We have a long-term contract with HSV past 2025. After Mr. Wüstefeld’s departure, we once more had a superb dialogue with the present members of the board of administrators, Jonas Boldt and Eric Hoover. Amendments to contracts ought to make sense for each events. I can solely say that the high quality of cooperation with HSV is utterly totally different, and we’ll work very reliably with the new administration duo. Along with the new HSV Marketing Director, Moritz Beckers-Schwartz, he has been an everyday contact individual at the membership since December 1st, which is essential for us.
HSV’s stadium naming contract with Kühne Holding AG expires in the summer time. Will HSV additionally play at the Volksparkstadion in the new season or will there be a brand new title?
Schifforst: HSV is in talks with Mr. Kühne, I do not know the content material of these talks. However, we’re additionally energetic in the market and are checking for curiosity in industrial use of the naming rights. At the similar time, there is a public dialogue about altering the title of the stadium to Uwe-Seeler-Stadion. Ultimately, HSV should determine whether or not and find out how to proceed the naming rights at the present Volksparkstadion.
Updated: 01/28/2023, 04:30
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