Photo: Aric Becker/ISI Photos/Getty Images, Photo illustration: Cora Veltman
Yahoo Sports is ramping up its soccer content in the lead-up to the 2026 FIFA World Cup in the United States, Mexico, and Canada.
Yahoo Sports and the Germany-based global soccer media platform backed by top soccer clubs including Real Madrid, Manchester City and FC Bayern Munich have agreed to create a new hub for soccer content.
The partnership will bring OneFootball news and analysis from leagues and competitions around the world to Yahoo Sports' approximately 90 million users. The Yahoo Sports and OneFootball co-branded hub will also feature OneFootball's library of original and partner content, as well as soccer coverage from a 24/7 newsroom operating in six languages.
“OneFootball will be the destination for soccer in the United States across the web, mobile web and sports apps,” Yahoo Sports President Ryan Spoon said in a video call. “We want all things soccer, and we want to build a robust experience there that is as good or better than the other sports we offer.”
Yahoo Sports sees soccer as a strategic growth space, especially with several major soccer tournaments to be held in North America over the next four years. Copa America in 2024, FIFA Club World Cup in 2025, and FIFA World Cup in 2026 (co-hosted with Canada and Mexico).
“We aim to be the best place in the country to provide those relationships and traffic, so it's a win for potential advertisers,” Spoon said. “Yahoo has historically and currently been very good at monetization and platforms. We do that on-site, off-site, and in collaboration with many partners.”
Founded in 2008, OneFootball partners with more than 200 soccer clubs, leagues, federations, players and broadcasters to bring its content to hundreds of markets around the world. Its shareholders include some of Europe's top football clubs, including Arsenal, Barcelona, Bayern Munich, Chelsea, Juventus, Liverpool, Manchester City, Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid.
The partnership will allow the German company, advised by Moelis & Company LLC, to reach new audiences in the United States and Canada.
“Our Club Advisory Committee [is] They all want organic reach in this space, so we're very excited,” OneFootball CEO Patrick Fischer said on a video call. “This is an interesting commercial opportunity for the club and for us. Football is the biggest sport on the planet and generates billions of dollars in revenue every year, so we hope to benefit from it. I want to get it.”
This is not OneFootball's first North American partnership.Company has consented to content sharing In 2022, it will also include content created during the FIFA World Cup in Qatar in partnership with the Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Football (CONCACAF). The partnership will deliver CONCACAF tournament content to OneFootball's media platforms.
Prior to the deal with CONCACAF, the company raised €300 million ($325 million) in a Series D funding round led by Liberty City Ventures, Animoca Brands, Dapper Labs, DAH Bepeiligungs GmbH, Quiet Capital, RIT Capital Partners, It included participation from Senator Investment Group. Then, in May 2022, he joined Arsala Investment Group.
The Yahoo Sports-OneFootball soccer hub will debut in the summer, with new content offerings to be announced subsequently.
