Trailblazer: Behind the scenes of Europe's first esports channels eSports1 and eSportsOne By Heather McLean, Editor
Thursday, April 22, 2021 - 15:16
Print This Story
The German media company, Sport1, will extend the reach of Europe's first dedicated esport channels - eSports1 and eSportsOne globally, following a European regionalisation plan.
The eSports1 channel was launched in January 2019 as the first linear TV channel for esports in the German-speaking region across Germany, Austria and Switzerland. It shows 1,200 live hours per year of international and national esports events, as well as highlight shows and in-house produced magazine shows.
After the successful launch of eSports1, Sport1 implemented a pan-European channel project with the start of eSportsOne on 3 November 2020 that currently broadcasts in English, although Daniel von Busse, COO TV and member of the management of Sport1, told SVG Europe that there are plans to offer regional languages across Europe going forward.
We don't differentiate today whether it's the Champions League football or a major esport event; it's all about good content and how we present the content and that's what [our content partners] really appreciate
Central content partners at launch and today for both platforms are ESL, Blizzard, EA Sport, the NBA 2K League and Psyonix with the esports titles Dota 2, Starcraft 2, Warcraft 3, NBA 2K, Overwatch and Rocket League.
Says Busse: In January 2019 we launched the German version for Germany, Austria and Switzerland. This is a dedicated platform, so we have an app - eSport1 app - and you can go directly to the app store and download it. Within this app, we have articles, VoDs, and also the linear channel. This model in Germany, Austria and Switzerland has been very, very successful and we got a lot of demand from the rest of Europe, so we [now] have this European version of the German language version.
The 24/7 programming for eSportsOne now comprises of over 1,200 to 1,400 live hours per year of international esports events as well as exclusive, self-produced analysis formats and VoD.
We believe in live, and I think this is the key driver of the channel, Busse says.
The driver to create the wider European version of the German language platform came from both the streaming platforms and sponsors, says Busse. The interest came from two sides. The business model is we are working together with the platforms, so we are putting our channel on certain platforms like A1, Swisscom, and Amazon and we have talked with DAZN and so on. We had a lot of pan-European platforms coming to us saying, this is a great idea and we want to have this channel in our portfolio .
The other demand came from the sponsors like Mercedes and the big brands. They came to us and said, this is really nice because we want to get into the esports environment so can you present us with a pan-European version of this, because we want to have pan-European distribution? .
In side the eSportsONE studio in Munich, Germany
Not Twitch or YouTube
eSports1 and eSportsOne are the first dedicated esport channels in Europe, notes Busse. There are some successful [dedicated esports platforms] in Asia where esport has actually come from, but in Europe, I think this is the first dedicated esports channel.
The idea of this is having a premium platform dedicated to esport. This is something that is differentiating us to platforms like Twitch or YouTube; they are more streaming platforms and they are doing a great job in that, but we have a different approach. We're working with a huge editorial team so it's more premium TV with a high editorial approach.
Today eSports1 is distributed on all the major platforms in Germany today, and Busse says, we are working on the distribution situation regarding the rest of Europe [for eSportsOne], but this is just the beginning .
Busse says these platforms are not Sport1's first foray into esports: We have a long history with esports; we started in 2010 or 2011 with our first moves and we tried it out a little bit. We had it on our digital platform, some articles and some VoDs, and we figured out it is actually something that is fitting to our platform.
Daniel von Busse, COO TV and member of the management of Sport1
World domination
On where the pan-European platform is going next, Busse laughs, on all major platforms all over the world . He adds: We secured the [content] rights on a pan-European base, so we are in the position to go to all territories across Europe right now and these talks are ongoing, but due to the actual [pandemic] situation it is a little bit slow. Even though we have a huge demand from the rest of Europe, it's different to talk about this project in person than on Teams or something. I would expect we would have been even quicker [to expand the platform] without COVID-19.
As for the future of the two platforms, Busse says: We want to have an even better distribution situation in Europe with talks to other territories; this is the first step. The second step is to have a more regional approach, not just an English speaking version but we want to have a focus on each of the major territories, not only in regards to the language, but also in regards to the titles and the athletes. For example, in England there is the cricket, but you wouldn't be successful with a cricket channel in Germany.
With esport it's pretty much the same; it's not one sport, it's like the Olympics with many different sports. The titles are differently successful in different territories. You want to have an editorial approach to certain athletes and more regionalised product in the territories. That would be the next step for us.
Content and distribution partnerships
The channels are distributed on Sport1's own app
Most recent headlines
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
06/09/2026
June 9 2026, 23:00 (PDT) Dolby and MagentaTV Bring Fans Closer to the FIFA Worl...
04/08/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
04/07/2026
April 7 2026, 19:00 (PDT) Detective Conan: Fallen Angel of the Highway Opens in...
02/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
02/07/2026
Standalone processors acknowledged for the innovation and value they bring to Pro AV
Cobalt Digital, a leading designer and manufacturer of signal processing ...
02/07/2026
Synamedia announced today the appointment of Dr Tzvi Gerstl as Chief Executive Officer. Paul Segre, who has served as CEO for the past six years, will transitio...
02/07/2026
Screen Australia backs audience-led filmmaking with new insight-driven initiativ...
02/07/2026
Screen Australia refines guidelines for Narrative Content Development and Docume...
02/07/2026
Maxon Autograph: Introduction to working with Tables
Simon Ubsdell July 1, 2026
0 Comments
An overview of Autograph's ridiculously powerful tables...
02/07/2026
Boston Conservatory's Soir e Breaks Records to Fund Student Scholarships The event achieved 127 percent of its fundraising goal in an evening celebrating ...
02/07/2026
How Adam Rosenwach Pivoted from Music to Med Tech Without Missing a Beat What do the rehearsal room and the boardroom have in common? More than you might thin...
01/07/2026
Broadcast Management Group (BMG) has announced the appointment of Kathy Samuels ...
01/07/2026
Shade has announced Custom Objects and Automations, a platform expansion releasing June 29, 2026, that adds database and workflow automation capabilities direct...
01/07/2026
FOR-A America has announced the addition of Jaz Wray and Fernando Cruz to its U.S. sales team. Both report to Ernie Leon, Senior VP and Head of Sales and Strate...
01/07/2026
NBC Sports will air all 15 MLB games nationally on Sunday, July 5, across NBC, P...
01/07/2026
Clear-Com has announced a wireless communications upgrade for Jeopardy! and Wheel of Fortune, deploying FreeSpeak II and FreeSpeak Icon systems across both prod...
01/07/2026
England's performance team will use Sony's STATSports APEX GPS tracking system to monitor player physical data in real time during FIFA World Cup 2026 m...
01/07/2026
Adder Technology has announced the appointment of Neil Hillier as Chief Executive Officer, effective July 1, 2026. Hillier succeeds Adrian Dickens, who transiti...
01/07/2026
Bitcentral, Inc. has announced a strategic transaction creating two separate companies. The Production and Playout business will continue as Bitcentral, now own...
01/07/2026
DAZN has announced results from DAZN48, its creator initiative for the FIFA World Cup 2026. Launched in April 2026, the program received thousands of applicatio...
01/07/2026
Sarah Rose, VP, global services, Daktronics (NASDAQ: DAKT), will be inducted into the Information Display and Entertainment Association (IDEA) Hall of Fame at t...
01/07/2026
Gravity Media and the World Economic Forum's production team provided broadc...
01/07/2026
Insight Productions has announced the launch of Insight Storm, a 53-foot mobile broadcast unit built for esports production. The truck is built around a Ross Vi...
01/07/2026
ESPN has announced several content initiatives marking America's 250th anniversary, as part of The Walt Disney Company's Disney Celebrates America pro...
01/07/2026
Eleven production kits, REMI workflows, and cloud distribution bring 40 World Cu...
01/07/2026
The conference also discussed the opportunities offered an industry that is endu...
01/07/2026
The Mountain West Conference has announced the launch of MW , a direct-to-consumer streaming platform powered by Kiswe. The platform will carry live Mountain We...
01/07/2026
New AI Assistant, Multi-channel Audio, ARA2 improvements & more
Tracktion's DAW software has just received its latest major update, gaining a selection ...
01/07/2026
Stammering, stuttering, strangulated tones
The Crow Hill Company's latest creation promises to be the most original sound set they've produced to d...
01/07/2026
Exclusive run of limited-edition modelling pedals
Sweetwater and Andertons M...
01/07/2026
The National Film and Video Foundation (NFVF) is pleased to announce that the ca...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Manfrotto Introduces UNCOVER, the new premium camera bag collection for modern h...
01/07/2026
Blackmagic Design Powers Houston Tamil Sangam Literacy Competition
Brie Clayton July 1, 2026
0 Comments
Volunteers use ATEM Mini Pro, Blackmagic Desig...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
PlayBox Technology has published State of Broadcast Infrastructure 2026, an in-depth industry research report examining the technologies, operational challenges...
01/07/2026
LONDON, UK, 1 JULY Jigsaw24 has appointed Alan Henry as Head of Sales for Media and Entertainment, reinforcing its continued investment in helping broadcaster...
01/07/2026
Content Vault, the patent-pending secure content distribution platform protecting high-value media from disclosures, theft and unauthorised access, today announ...
01/07/2026
Bitcentral, Inc. a leading provider of enterprise software and digital media solutions for news, sports and entertainment broadcasters, as well as streaming pla...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Share
Copy link
Facebook
X
Linkedin
Bluesky
Email...
01/07/2026
Groundbreaking First Nations Screen Business Accelerator launched through nation...
Trailblazer: Behind the scenes of Europe's first esports channels eSports1 and eSportsOne By Heather McLean, Editor 
