“2020 DFL Economic Report”: Bundesliga revenue exceeds €4 billion for the first time – Bundesliga 2 also achieves record revenue

• Professional clubs pay €1.4 billion in taxes and duties
• 56,081 people employed directly or indirectly in the Bundesliga and Bundesliga 2
• Christian Seifert: German professional football is a highly successful economic sector

18 February 2020 – In the 2018-19 season, the revenue generated by the 18 Bundesliga clubs exceeded €4 billion for the first time. Total revenue of €4.02 billion represents a 5.4 per cent increase on the previous season, as well as the 15th successive year of record revenue. The clubs of Bundesliga 2, whose key economic indicators are more affected by the more significant changes in the composition of the league, also achieved an all-time high in the past season in terms of their total revenue, which rose by 28.5 per cent to €782 million.

These and other records are shown in the “2020 DFL Economic Report” published this Tuesday by the DFL Deutsche Fußball Liga. The report presents the cumulative key economic figures of the Bundesliga and Bundesliga 2 for the 2018-19 season.

“In recent years, we have worked with our partners to develop German professional football into a highly successful economic sector,” says Christian Seifert, Speaker of the DFL Executive Committee, adding: “The Bundesliga and Bundesliga 2 in total enjoy solid economic stability. Additional future growth prospects will result in particular from digital innovations and on the international front.”

28 of the 36 professional clubs with a net profit

The business operations of the professional clubs also have a fiscal and economic impact. All in all, the Bundesliga and Bundesliga 2 have paid almost €10 billion in taxes and duties to the tax authorities and social security institutions in the past ten seasons – including a new record of €1.4 billion in the 2018-19 season alone. With their economic strength, the clubs are also expanding their organisational structures. This means that German professional football is continuing to create jobs: 56,081 people were employed either directly or indirectly in the Bundesliga and Bundesliga 2, a figure that has risen by 52 per cent over the past ten years.

An overall assessment of the key economic indicators of the two divisions also shows that the Bundesliga and Bundesliga 2 have increased their total revenue by 136 per cent within ten years to an all-time high of €4.8 billion. Of the 36 professional clubs, 28 closed the 2018-19 season with a net profit. Equity also reached record levels in both leagues, totalling €1.8 billion in the Bundesliga and €174 million in Bundesliga 2.