„Sports, Finance, Technology & Media" – That’s how I would describe my passion in just four words. This intersection of fields has been the result of a diverse set of experiences over the last 25 years: over a decade in professional (youth) football, an excellent Bachelor’s degree in Business Administration from the leading business school in Germany, in-depth working experiences in international markets (e.g. Spain, Ecuador), as well as an inherent interest in finance and economics which led to top-notch internships in the fields of Mergers & Acquisitions (Sell-Side) and Private Equity (Buy-Side).

My first exposure to the fundamental disruption across the business of sports, technology, and media landscape, though, came during my semester abroad at the University in Michigan which led to my decision to go all-in to everything "Sports, Finance, Technology & Media" when it comes to my professional career. Ever since that time in 2015, I always aimed at combining my studies, professional experiences, or self-started projects and any self-development to the business of sports - laying the groundwork to where I am today:

My Bachelor’s thesis covering the „Competitive Balance and Revenue-Sharing in Professional Team Sports“ (GPA: 3.7), a Master’s degree in “Sports Business & Communication” and my work for the sports holding of one of the leading media conglomerates in Germany (including exposure to strategic mergers & acquisitions, sports content and distribution strategies, as well as audiovisual rights valuations and acquisitions) further familiarized myself with the business of sports – a field which also became of interest to me since it has traditionally always been at the forefront of innovations in technology and media.

In May 2017, I launched OFFTHEFIELDBUSINESS.de because I was convinced that I could contribute interesting thoughts, knowledge, and viewpoints to the public discussion about everything "Sports, Finance, Technology & Media" and knew that it was never too early to connect and exchange ideas with like-minded individuals in such a people-driven business. At the same time, I was eager to expose and challenge my thoughts in front of a much more experienced and knowledgeable audience.

I concluded my Master’s degree with an extensive thesis investigating the “Impact of the Digitization of the Sports Rights Market in Germany” (GPA: 4.0): In-depth conversations with leading industry experts and decision-makers along the entire value chain of the sports broadcasting market (e.g. DFL, Sky Germany, DAZN, Eurosport, IMG, Lagardère) further deepened my understanding of the sports business industry and sports media ecosystem as well as the current broadcast and new media/OTT landscapes in Europe and North America. Along the way, I gained further working experiences through other part-time projects: For example, I did consult a Munich-based sports marketing agency on the potential entry into the North American sports market and a team of the Australian Football League (AFL) regarding its expansion into the Chinese market.

 Almost feeling fully equipped to enter the professional workforce full-time, but being aware of the disruptive nature of the ongoing digitization across all facets of today’s world, I opted for a second graduate degree, majoring in “Innovation & Technology” at Boston University. Then, I spent the second half of 2018 in New York (USA) to touch base with my network that I was able to establish thanks to OFFTHEFIELDBUSINESS.de and visited a lot of leading companies in sports, media, and technology over several months along the East Coast of the United States.

As of February 2019, I joined the Berlin-based ONEFOOTBALL GmbH, the leading digital media platform for the modern football fan.

Today, I’m leading the company’s OTT Streaming business, steering the global roll-out of the company’s first direct-to-consumer business vertical on top of its B2B2C ad-supported media platform. We aim at creating a value proposition particularly tailored to younger audiences amidst the ongoing disruption of the sports broadcasting market and ever-hanging consumer behaviors. In general, I consider the further evolution of the media product of sports in a way that is both (1) appealing to the new generation of fans (while not leaving other demographics behind) and (2) facilitating a fundamentally viable business amidst those ever-more heterogenous consumptions habits/preferences as a wonderfully interesting challenge for next few years. That challenge I see situated at the intersection of „sports x media x finance“ — with technology being the enabling factors. 

 Besides our exciting and revolutionary vision at OneFootball, I continue to have ambitions to establish myself as a thought leader in the sports business and media industry – which, together with my conviction that I would be able to contribute interesting views and thoughts on current trends in this space, was the main reason to start OFFTHEFIELDBUSINESS.de in the first place. Thus, sharing specialized knowledge in business models and trends at the intersection of sports, finance, media, and technology on OFFTHEFIELDBUSINESS.de, third-party publications, speaking engagements, and through consulting work are things I am eager to continue going forward.

Looking back, I am also particularly proud of the fact that my vision, expectations, and objectives for the side-hustle “OFFTHEFIELDBUSINESS.de” came true: getting a jump-start on others as I entered the sports business and media industry as a professional. That is also what I recommend other recent graduates who are eager to combine their passion for sports with their professional future: read and listen a lot to equip yourself with the required knowledge and skills that go beyond all things being taught during your studies and then differentiate yourself from the pack by being a self-starter.

In addition to my own channels, I started to embrace third-party platforms to share my ideas, opinions, and viewpoints on what is going at the intersection of "Sports, Finance, Technology & Media” and appreciate any opportunity to do so: Regardless whether we are talking about guest columns, speaking engagements, expert interviews (e.g. bachelor’s / master’s thesis), appearances on podcasts, or you just want to “talk shop,” feel free to reach out here, on LinkedIn, or Twitter.

Selected references can be found below: