The upswing in women’s soccer brought the Bundesliga new record revenues. Werder player Rieke Dieckmann is particularly pleased about the increased attention.
Werder player Rieke Dieckmann has almost 100 Bundesliga games in her CV. In her youth she even played for the national team and she was also used abroad – but she was rarely in the limelight. At least less often than many of their male colleagues. “Most of our lives we’ve played on the back courts,” said the 26-year-old in a media interview.
New TV contract brings record income
However, this is likely to change in the future. Not only for Dieckmann, but for all players who play in the German upper house. Because the German Football Association (DFB) recently raised a record sum for the award of media rights for the Bundesliga: The income from license sales will therefore amount to around 5.2 million euros from the 2023/24 season – and that per season.
Happy about the new TV contract: Werder player Rieke Dieckmann.
Compared to the men’s Bundesliga, which receives 1.1 billion euros per season for the sale of TV rights, that’s still a mess. But compared to the previous contract, the DFB increased its income by a factor of 16. For the Bundesliga kickers, the financial quantum leap means more TV presence, more live games and more attention. Or as Dieckmann sums it up: “That’s exactly what we’ve been wanting for years.”
“All of this will contribute to the media presence being significantly increased again. This will also simply improve the level overall.”
(Werder player Rieke Dieckmann in a media round)
The EM boom has also arrived in Bremen
In women’s football in this country, there is still great hope that the hype triggered by the European Championship in the summer will also affect everyday league life. Despite the young season, which is only three game days old, Werder is already experiencing a certain upswing: while an average of around 350 spectators came to Werder home games last season, the Green-Whites welcomed almost 600 visitors against Potsdam .
According to Dieckmann, not only has the number of viewers increased, but also their type of support. “Last season we only had a few cheers,” says the Werder top performer. In the first home game against Potsdam (1-1), however, the audience was “like a twelfth man”. “It does have an effect on the pitch,” said the 26-year-old. No wonder Dieckmann is hoping for “a few more spectators” in 11th place at the Weser Stadium before Werder’s home game against MSV Duisburg (Sunday, 4:01 p.m.). Because more audience means more support – on many levels.
