EHF Champions League generates audience of 530 million in 2020/21

MEDIA RELEASE: Broadcast success for EHF Marketing, Infront and DAZN Group in partnership’s first season

The first season of EHF Marketing’s partnership with Infront and DAZN Group saw a cumulative audience of 530 million tune in to watch the EHF Champions League.

In total 12,000 hours of handball were broadcast to handball fans across the globe and, with an increase in broadcasters operating on OTT platforms or online, the EHF Champions League was more accessible than ever.

The newly branded competitions also benefited and were complimented by the EHF Marketing’s commitment to enhancing TV production and digital coverage. The past season had a digital reach of 400 million, with 750,000 followers of EHF Champions League channels responsible for 11 million engagement and a combined 60 million video views.

The success did not stop there. The EHF’s OTT platform, EHFTV, attracted more than 250,000 global subscribers in its first season after its relaunch in summer 2020. Subscribers were able to access and enjoy matches free of charge, in addition to all highlights and special features.

EHF and EHFM’s 10-year exclusive media and marketing partnership with Infront and DAZN Group officially started in July 2020. Guided by a shared strategic vision, the long-term partnership works to unlock new commercial opportunities and drive operational excellence for all EHF competitions, across production, digital marketing, media rights and sponsorship sales.

David Szlezak, Managing Director EHF Marketing, said: “These positive figures in the first season of the partnership prove that our club competitions enjoyed a great start. Our thanks go to participating clubs, plus our partners and stakeholders for their support. Now the hard work continues as we aim for an even more successful season in 2021/22.”

Sandro Forny, Head of Handball at Infront, said: “A lot of time and effort was put into working towards the 2020/21 season and the results represent a combined effort from all parties to take handball to the next level. We have now set a solid foundation for the future and we look forward to pushing beyond that as this partnership continues to develop in a positive manner.”

James Chubb, VP Global Rights Partnerships, DAZN Group, said: “Our digital approach has helped boost audience numbers and make EHF’s club competitions more accessible than ever before. Together with Infront, our progressive digital marketing and content strategy is driving commercial growth and helping handball reach new fans worldwide.”

Handball’s top-flight returns to arenas with the opening matches of the 2021/22 season in DELO EHF Champions League on Saturday 11 September and the EHF Champions League Men on Wednesday 15 September.

About EHF Marketing GmbH

EHF Marketing GmbH is the marketing arm and subsidiary of the European Handball Federation. The company works closely with marketing and media partners, as well as with Europe’s leading clubs to release the full potential of the sport on the international sports market. The EHF Marketing GmbH is responsible for the exploitation, organisation and promotion of the European club handball competitions including the EHF Champions League Men, the DELO EHF Champions League and the EHF European League.

About Infront

Connecting fans and consumers to the greatest sports events, Infront, a Wanda Sports Group company, offers everything an event or commercial partner needs to be successful. With a team of around 1,000 experts working from 44 offices across 17 countries around the world, Infront is equipped to tackle any challenge – be it innovative digital solutions, world-class event operations, international media rights distribution, sponsorship sales and activations or cutting-edge media production. Headquartered in Switzerland, Infront is passionate and #AllAboutSports. @infrontsports www.infront.sport.

About DAZN Group

DAZN Group is one of the fastest growing sports media companies in the world. Headquartered in the UK and with employees in over 25 countries, our businesses touch every aspect of the way fans engage with sports; from production, through to content distribution and commercialisation. DAZN Group is home to DAZN, the leading global sport destination, as well as the popular sport portal, DAZN News. DAZN is leading the charge to give sports fans around the world access to sport anytime, anywhere. DAZN guarantees affordable access on most connected devices including smart TVs, set-top boxes, streaming sticks, smartphones, tablets, PCs and game consoles. DAZN is now live in more than 200 countries and territories after first launching in Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Japan in 2016. Visit www.dazngroup.com for more information.

Media enquiries:

EHF Media:

Thomas Schöneich

Director Media and Communications

Phone: +43 664 88 222 508

Email: schoeneich@eurohandball.com

Infront Sports & Media AG:

Nick Winn

Manager | Strategic Communications

Phone: +41 41 723 15 15

Email: nick.winn@infrontsports.com

DAZN Group:

Abigail Pudwell

Global Communications Manager

Phone: +44 7970 954220

Email: abigail.pudwell@dazn.com

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