Jamie Vardy Joins Bundesliga Broadcasting with Bayern vs Stuttgart

Jamie Vardy is used to crashing parties. Now he’s gate-crashing the Bundesliga’s broadcasting game.

According to a report by The Athletic’s German football correspondent Seb Stafford-Bloor, the former Leicester City and England striker has become a live rights holder for Germany’s top flight and will launch his coverage with Bayern Munich vs Stuttgart later tonight.

This isn’t a late-career playing move or a token pundit slot. Vardy is stepping directly into the broadcasting space, fronting live watchalongs of Bundesliga matches at a time when the English-speaking market still leans heavily towards the Premier League.

He will do it under the banner of That’s Football, the channel hosted by Mark Goldbridge of The United Stand fame. Goldbridge has built a large, loyal audience off Premier League watchalongs and fan-led content; now the Bundesliga wants a slice of that attention.

The league’s strategy is clear. By aligning with two recognisable English football figures – one from the pitch in Vardy, one from the digital fan world in Goldbridge – the Bundesliga is trying to cut through to British and Irish viewers who might otherwise only glance at German football when Bayern reach the latter stages of the Champions League.

This is not a traditional TV rights play, but a marketing move that leans into how younger fans actually consume football: live streams, interactive chats, personalities front and centre. Vardy’s presence brings instant name recognition and a Premier League-era storyline to a league that often fights for space in that crowded conversation.

Kevin Hatchard, one of the English-language commentators on the Bundesliga’s international feed, has already spoken publicly about Vardy’s involvement, welcoming the idea of the former striker hosting live watchalongs and adding another English voice to the league’s outreach.

Bayern vs Stuttgart is an intriguing place to start: Germany’s perennial champions against one of the Bundesliga’s most watchable sides in recent seasons, served up to an audience that might be tuning in as much for Vardy as for the football itself.

The question now is simple: can a Premier League cult hero help turn casual curiosity about the Bundesliga into a regular appointment for British and Irish fans?