"Sports, Business, 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 from the leading business school in Germany, in-depth working experiences in international markets (e.g. Spain, Ecuador), as well as an increasing interest in finance and economics which led to top-notch internships in the field of Mergers & Acquisitions (Sell-Side) and Private Equity (Buy-Side).

 

My first exposure to the cutting-edge developments across the business of sports, technology, and digital disruption in the U.S. sports landscape during my semester abroad at the University in Michigan then led to my decision to go all-in to everything "Sports, Business, Technology & Media" when it comes to my professional future. Ever since, I always aimed at combining my studies, professional experiences, or self-initiated projects to the world 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 companies in Germany (including areas such as strategic mergers & acquisitions, content and distribution strategies, as well as audiovisual rights valuations and acquisitions) further familiarized myself with the business of sports - a field that has traditionally always been at the forefront of innovations in technology and media. 

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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, Business, Technology & Media" and knew that it was never too early to connect and exchange ideas with like-minded individuals in this people-driven business.

 

I concluded my Master’s degree with an extensive thesis tackling the “Impact of the Digitization of the Sports Rights Market in Germany” (GPA: 4.0): In-depth conversations with industry experts and decision makers along the entire value chain of the sports broadcasting market (e.g. DFL, Sky Germany, DAZN, Eurosport, ARD, ZDF, ProSiebenSat.1 Media, Sport1, 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. I gained further working experiences through other part-time projects along the way: For example, I did consult a Munich-based sports marketing agency on a 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 ready to enter the professional world 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. 

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As of February 2019, I joined the Berlin-based ONEFOOTBALL GmbH, the leading digital media platform for the modern football fan, (see: SPONSORs - Article) where I will be responsible for the direct-to-consumer OTT / LIVE & ON-DEMAND STREAMING business - a platform that aims at being particularly tailored to the ongoing disruption of the sports broadcasting market and changing consumer behaviours among younger audiences.

 

Besides our exciting and revolutionary vision at Onefootball GmbH, I continue to have ambitions to establish myself as some kind of 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. Therefore, there is no reason for stopping to share my views and trying to add to the discussion just because I „entered the workforce“ and have an exciting professional project ahead of me. Thus, (almost) nothing is going to change with regard to what you can expect on this sports business and media blog as I explained shortly after joining the company: Personal Announcement - Joining ONEFOOTBALL GmbH, the Future of OFFTHEFIELDBUSINESS.de & my Ambitions Going Forward.

 

In this regard, I am also particularly proud of the fact that my vision, expectations, and objectives for the side-hustle “OFFTHEFIELDBUSINESS.de” from the time of the launch still hold true today. I shared the following about two years ago:

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So let's simply keep it going!

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The only addition I would make - but what would probably have been a little bit presumptuous two years ago - is that I really want to embrace third-party platforms to share my ideas, opinions, and viewpoints on what is going at the intersection of "Sports, Business, Technology & Media” and appreciate any opportunity to do so: Regardless whether we are discussing guest columns, speaking engagements, expert interviews (e.g. bachelor’s / master’s thesis), or you just want to “talk shop,” feel free to reach out here, on LinkedIn, or Twitter. 

 

Selected references can be found below: