The competition authorities in Germany and Austria have officially approved the joint venture between Olympia-Verlag, its subsidiary kicker ventures GmbH, and Ringier Sports Media Group AG (RSMG). This paves the way for the creation of a unique digital sports ecosystem for Switzerland.
The centerpiece is the new Swiss version of the kicker app, a proven success in Germany, now available in all app stores. It targets the Swiss sports community and launches with extensive coverage of Swiss football. The offering will be continuously expanded with the clear goal of covering all Swiss sports and giving fans of every discipline a digital home.
The joint venture RSMG kicker Schweiz AG combines the strengths of the existing platforms kicker.ch and sport.ch with an international network, technological know-how, and even more journalistic quality. An expanded newsroom in Zurich produces daily content on Swiss sports. This is supplemented by content from RSMG’s European network, featuring brands such as A Bola, sportal.rs, and GSP.ro, as well as from the kicker editorial teams in Germany and Austria and kicker’s sports verticals handball-world.news, basketball-world.news, and football-world.news. The result: coverage that is deeply rooted locally while also internationally connected.
Users benefit from real-time news powered by data-driven technologies and a modern newsroom setup. Editorial coverage ranges from amateur to professional sports and is continuously enhanced by technological innovations in the app.
The joint venture kicks off with strong numbers: 1.5 million unique users and more than 23 million page views per month. Reach is expected to grow significantly in the coming years, following RSMG’s proven playbook already successfully rolled out in eight European markets. Kicker’s proprietary technology, premium journalism, and targeted marketing activities will drive the ambitious goals. Monetization of the new ecosystem will be handled by Ringier Advertising, which already manages kicker.ch and sport.ch.
Bärbel Schnell, Managing Director of Olympia-Verlag GmbH: “With the Ringier Sports Media Group, we have a partner with deep expertise in international markets and especially in Switzerland. The combination of quality journalism, data depth, and technological excellence has made our kicker app extremely successful in Germany. With this joint venture, together with our partner, we aim to build a product tailored to Swiss users’ needs – a central home for sports information.”
Robin Lingg, Chairman of the Board of RSMG: “The partnership with kicker, the strongest sports brand in the German-speaking world, is a decisive step for us. By combining kicker’s digital innovation power and reach with the local strength of sport.ch, we are laying the foundation for a new digital sports ecosystem in Switzerland. With kicker ventures at our side, we are bringing together complementary strengths and pursuing ambitious growth plans. For RSMG, this collaboration means further expanding our international platform strategy while also sending a strong signal for the future of digital sports journalism in our home market.”
Markus Krienbühl, Managing Director RSMG kicker Schweiz AG: “With the new kicker CH app and the established platforms sport.ch and kicker.ch, we are creating a new digital home for sports fans in Switzerland. Our goal is to combine sporting passion with journalistic quality, innovation, and dedication to set new benchmarks in the Swiss market. Credibility, closeness to sports, and a deep understanding of Swiss fans are at the heart of our approach – building an offering that creates trust, sparks emotions, and reflects the full diversity of sport.”
About kicker
“Close to the game since 1920” – kicker has been covering football with dedication and expertise for over a century. Twice a week, the print magazine takes its readers into stadiums worldwide, delivering insights on players, clubs, and associations. Together with its digital platforms kicker.de, eMagazines, apps, and podcasts, kicker reaches more than 17 million football and sports fans per month, making it Germany’s most widely read sports media brand.
About kicker ventures
kicker Ventures GmbH manages Olympia-Verlag’s investment activities. The company focuses on innovative business models in the DACH region, with a strong focus on digital, technology, media, sports, and outdoor industries. Led by Managing Directors Oliver Kühn and Werner Wittmann, it supports scalable business ideas through strategic investments, especially in the seed and start-up phase.
About Olympia-Verlag
Olympia-Verlag is home to the long-established brands kicker and Alpin. Through its subsidiary kicker Ventures GmbH, it fosters innovative business models in the sports and technology sectors. The company holds stakes in the eSports platform EarlyGame, live content platform Tickaroo, and digital voice assistant specialists thinking apps. Its subsidiary kicker sportsworld GmbH covers handball, basketball, and American football, while its Hamburg-based marketer Quarter Media is one of Germany’s largest sports media marketers. Founded in 1946, Olympia-Verlag is a wholly owned subsidiary of Verlag Nürnberger Presse GmbH & Co. KG, a family-owned company.
About Ringier Sports Media Group (RSMG)
Founded in 2022, RSMG connects leading national sports media with innovative technology. With 9 brands across 8 European countries, RSMG reaches more than 23 million fans each month, supported by 380 media professionals. In addition to its established sports media brands, RSMG operates the content management system “Sportal.365.” Through targeted investments in digital sports media, RSMG drives market consolidation and aims to establish a leading position in Europe’s sports media landscape. RSMG brands include Sportal Media Group (Bulgaria) with sportal.bg, gsp.ro (Romania), sportal.rs (Serbia), sportal.hu (Hungary), sport.sk (Slovakia), A Bola (Portugal), Sportnieuws.nl (Netherlands), and RSMG kicker Schweiz AG (Switzerland) with kicker.ch and sport.ch. RSMG’s stake in the UK-based LiveScore Group highlights its strategic expansion path.
About sport.ch
sport.ch is a Swiss sports platform providing broad coverage across various sports. It offers breaking news, live tickers, highlights, videos, and streams for disciplines such as football, ice hockey, tennis, and more. Until early 2025, sport.ch was operated by Ringier Sports, a subsidiary of the Swiss media company Ringier, before being integrated into RSMG.