Bernd Freimüller: How did Sporteurope's entry into the ICE come about a year ago?
Björn Beinhauer: Our ice hockey involvement began in 2023 with the Ice Hockey World Championship rights in Germany, together with the CHL, both of which can also be received in Austria. The DEL in cooperation with Magenta and the NHL were then added, followed by the DEL2 in 2024. Strategically, we focused primarily on German-speaking countries. The expansion towards the ICE-HL also coincided with the renaming of Sport Deutschland to Sport Europe. As an international league, the ICE then also fit well into our portfolio.
Freimüller: So the DEL2 has a one-year head start on the ICE with Sport Europe – how would you compare these two leagues?
"Ich erwarte aber eigentlich, dass die ICE als oberste Spielklasse die DEL2 zumindest einholen sollte. Aber es ist gleichzeitig schwierig, zwei völlig verschiedene Märkte zu vergleichen."
Beinhauer: Germany is, of course, a much larger market; the DEL2 has been streaming itself for over ten years now. We then professionalized that further, for example, by having fiber optics installed in all arenas. Among the 14 teams, there are also many traditional clubs. However, I actually expect that the ICE, as the top league, should at least catch up with the DEL2. But it is simultaneously difficult to compare two completely different markets.
Freimüller: At the beginning of last season, technical problems with your broadcasts were reported in the ICE, before they settled down. How did that happen and what was done?
Beinhauer: The clubs themselves are responsible for the broadcasts, and it must be said that everything came together relatively short-term. The ICE previously broadcasted on another platform, and the signals were converted again for that. Once we got that under control, things ran stably and well.
We ourselves now also have several people who specifically only deal with ice hockey.
Freimüller: Regarding the visuals, but also the commentators, were significant differences noticeable from club to club?
"Wir arbeiten daran, die Lücken zu schließen, aber natürlich muss man auch ehrlich sagen, dass es auch eine Frage der Mittel ist."
Beinhauer: We are working with the clubs; everyone has to meet certain standards: 1080p, HD, number of commentators, etc. But it starts with what camera is used and what the streaming conditions are like in the stadiums; despite standards, there are still different results. However, this is no different in the DEL2. We know, however, that we are judged by our worst broadcasts, which then also lead to criticism. We are working to close the gaps, but of course, one must also honestly say that it is also a question of resources.
Freimüller: With the commentators, who are all very committed, one sometimes notices a closeness to their club?
Beinhauer: We constantly try to emphasize neutrality, because one must not forget: Most viewers come from outside, i.e., from the visiting club. So if I pay 9.90 Euros and a fan of the home team is sitting behind the microphone, an emotional imbalance arises. But in the future, there will also be an audio track without commentary. We are also continuing to expand bilingual commentary, which has been well received. The stadium atmosphere is fixed; we are continuing to work on the two audio tracks.
Regarding the commentators, it is understandable that they have more knowledge about the home team, but we really encourage them to inform themselves more about the guest team as well.
Freimüller: What was the overall conclusion after the first season?
"Wir waren schon zufrieden, die Umsätze sind gestiegen. Ich habe aber immer hohe Erwartungen, daher kann ich nicht sagen, dass alles top war."
Beinhauer: We were satisfied, and revenues have increased. However, I always have high expectations, so I can't say everything was perfect. We are, of course, aiming for significant growth, starting a new advertising campaign next Monday. Naturally, we want all teams to grow, but even in Germany, we observe that there are some top performers and others who don't perform as well.
Of course, the teams are also challenged to drum up even more support, even if I understand that they first want to fill their home arenas well.
Freimüller: Do you have an overview of where the viewers come from?
Beinhauer: Not in detail – one can read out the IP addresses, but since we don't have geoblocking, one can log in from anywhere, for example, from vacation. It's clear that away fans usually make up the majority, but there have also been games where it was the other way around.
Freimüller: Regarding the highlight videos compiled by AI – the advantage is that they are available promptly, the disadvantage is that they are always the same length, which means some scenes are included that have nothing to do with highlights. Will there be changes here?
Beinhauer: We are now working with this AI for the third year; we use this model, which is also used by the NHL and NBA, and also for the World Championship. Unfortunately, it is currently the case that you have to tell the AI what length you want. A 1-0 score then appears stretched. But with the start of the season, there will be two highlight versions, one of four minutes and the extended highlights of nine minutes. The clubs also receive other highlight versions from us for their social media channels, with which we have been able to achieve wide reach.
Freimüller: The biggest discussions among fans, of course, always concern prices. What can be expected here?
"Das Geld geht grundsätzlich an die Liga, die es dann an die Vereine verteilt, wobei ich den Schlüssel nicht kenne. Am Montag werden wir eben die neuen Modelle vorstellen."
Beinhauer: Of course, prices are always a sensitive point, even more so in an international league. Our standard price of 9.90 Euros naturally has a different value in Hungary than in Austria.
We have a model where the majority of the proceeds go to the clubs, so we are not comparable to licensing platforms like Magenta. The teams expect minimum revenues, and the goal is, of course, to match or exceed these, which is why we decided against a price reduction. The money generally goes to the league, which then distributes it to the clubs, though I don't know the exact key.
On Monday, we will present the new models. There will again be All-Access passes, which can now also be purchased with a one-time payment and as an early bird offer for 259 Euros, plus, of course, single games as well as home and away plans. What's new: The A-WM (Top Division World Championship) is automatically included in the All-Access Pass – regardless of whether it's a monthly or one-time payment.
Aside from the price, both our platform and the Smart TV app have received a relaunch.
Freimüller: A question that arose this summer - "We pay for 12 months, so why aren't the test games included?"
Beinhauer: That also happened in coordination with the teams; the season passes really only refer to the league. Because there are many test games against non-league teams, which would have resulted in confusion and led to discussions.
