FINANCIAL experts have lowered their expectations for German economic growth in recent weeks as Europe’s largest market feels the discomfort of a fragmented global economy. While the bigger picture seems uncertain almost everywhere, Germany’s football league, the Bundesliga, is growing faster than the country.
The Bundesliga as a whole, in other words including Bundesliga 2, generated a record €6.33 billion in 2024-25, an increase of 7.9% compared to 2023-24. There is much to admire about German football, even if the creation of gold rush football has allowed the Premier League to overtake the Bundesliga to some extent. Some might argue that the Prime Minister sold his soul long ago and that Germany is taking a more conservative approach, which has made football slightly less competitive on the European stage.
Germany has won two Champions League titles in the past twenty years, both of which went to the all-conquering Bayern Munich. England, on the other hand, have won five with four different clubs. Moreover, the Bundesliga has been the best supported league for the past thirty years, but in 2025 the Premier will have a slightly higher average attendance. German clubs are managed differently with the so-called 50+1 holdings in clubs, which can prevent hasty behavior and irresponsible financial planning.
In 2024-2025, 13 Bundesliga clubs and 15 Bundesliga 2 clubs were profitable, that is 28 out of 36 clubs, an improvement of 11 clubs compared to 2023-2024. The total result was a profit of €271 million, a record for German football. Wages in the top flight totaled €1.7 billion, representing 33.6% of income, a much healthier ratio than in most leagues in Europe.
Of the €5.1 billion the Bundesliga generated (an increase of 6.7%), almost €600 million was attributable to matchdays, 11.7% of total revenue. Between the two divisions, 20.9 tickets were sold, of which 11.6 million for the Bundesliga and 9.3 for Bundesliga 2. The occupancy rate in the stadiums was 95.9%. Bundesliga 2 is interesting because the division well supported clubs such as Schalke (average 61,000), Hamburg (56,000), Hertha Berlin (53,500) and Köln (50,000). This was undoubtedly reflected in the 13% increase in turnover in the division to € 1.2 billion. The average attendance for Bundesliga 2 was 30,493, well compared to the Bundesliga average of 39,082.
The Bundesliga received approximately €1.1 billion from advertising (22%) and €1.7 billion came from broadcasting (33%). The merchandise generated €285 million (5.6%). German football has created 64,000 jobs for the economy and around €1.7 billion in taxes and fees are paid by the Bundesliga and Bundesliga 2. Over the past ten years, social security contributions have totaled €14 billion. German football has a reputation for being stable and largely sustainable. All clubs reported positive equity in 2024-25 and during the season equity exceeded €2 billion for the first time.
The league’s CEO, Marc Lenz, outlined the challenge the league faces in evaluating the Bundesliga’s financial performance: “With its balanced mix of revenues and rational use of resources, German professional football maintains the increasingly difficult balance between sporting competitiveness and economic stability – especially in light of international dynamics.”
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