Bundesliga Media has expanded its UK and Ireland broadcast approach for the 2026-27 season, adding a YouTube channel fronted by former Premier League winner Jamie Vardy and renewing its agreement with the YouTube channel That’s Football, hosted by Mark Goldbridge.
Vardy will lead the live broadcast on the YouTube channel Jamie Vardy’s Having a Party, showing seven Bundesliga Friday night matches across the UK and Ireland during the season. The partnership begins with the season-opening fixture between FC Bayern München and VfB Stuttgart this evening (Friday 28 August), with further matches to be confirmed during the campaign.
The collaboration forms part of a broader partnership with Banijay Entertainment. Through Banijay UK and its Workerbee production company, the group will produce the Bundesliga live show with Vardy and other guests, providing reaction, insight and discussion around German football fixtures.
“Fans don’t just want to watch football anymore, they want to experience it with the people they already know and trust,” said Rick Murray, chief executive of Workerbee.
“Jamie has built an incredible community around the podcast, and thanks to our Bundesliga partnership, we can bring that audience closer to some seriously big games. This deal acts as another major step for Banijay Entertainment’s growing sports offering, which combines brilliant talent, premium football, and plenty of ways to watch.”
The addition of Vardy brings a player-led format to the Bundesliga’s creator-led distribution, combining live coverage with commentary from Vardy and his guests.
Bundesliga Media has also renewed its partnership with That’s Football for the 2026-27 season. Goldbridge will continue to stream 15 Friday night Bundesliga matches through live watch-alongs. Coverage begins with matchday 3 on 11 September at 19:30 BST – 1. FC Union Berlin against FC Schalke 04 – and includes FC Bayern München against 1. FC Union Berlin on 18 September.
The renewal follows the 2025-26 season, during which Goldbridge became a destination for Bundesliga fans on Friday evenings, particularly younger viewers. With a community of more than 1.5m subscribers, 54% of live match viewers for Bundesliga games were aged between 13 and 34.
“It’s fantastic to be partnering up with the Bundesliga once again for the new season”, said Goldbridge. “The reaction from our community last year was incredible—the fans couldn’t get enough of the atmosphere, the top-tier football, and live watch-alongs. We built something really special together each Friday night, and I can’t wait to jump back in and take it to another level this year.”
In 2025, the Bundesliga became one of the first major European football leagues to make live matches regularly available through creator-led broadcasts in the UK and Ireland. The approach combines established broadcast partnerships with new platforms and formats, reflecting the ways in which football audiences in the two markets consume live sport. Sky Sports, BBC, Amazon and Samsung TV Plus remain central to the strategy, Bundesliga said.
“Our approach is as diverse as our fans. Football audiences are changing, and there is no single way in which people want to experience the Bundesliga. Our job is to understand each market, work with the right partners and build a distribution model around how fans actually consume football there,” said Peer Naubert, chief commercial officer of Bundesliga Media.
“The UK and Ireland is a great example of that approach. Last season, our collaboration with YouTube showed the potential of creator-led coverage, particularly in reaching younger audiences. Renewing that partnership and adding Jamie Vardy gives fans another distinctive way to experience the Bundesliga, alongside our established broadcast, streaming and digital partners.”
