Sat.1 Gold targeting tennis rights on back of Lisicki success

German free-to-air television channel Sat.1 Gold is seeking to enhance its tennis rights portfolio following the success of Sabine Lisicki at the Wimbledon championships, according to the HorizonT website.

Sat.1 Gold is part of commercial broadcaster ProSiebenSat.1, which in March agreed a 10-year rights deal, from 2013 to 2022, with the Deutschen Tennis Bund, the governing body of tennis in Germany.

The deal included all matches featuring the Germany men’s and women’s national teams during the Davis Cup and Fed Cup tournaments, respectively, as well as some top-tier Premier tournaments on the Women’s Tennis Association Tour.

Lisicki this month reached the women’s singles final at Wimbledon and Sat.1 Gold manager Marc Rasmus said her success has boosted tennis interest in Germany.

Rasmus said: “Tennis is a strategically important issue for us. We started in April with the transfer of the Fed Cup and we really want to show tennis more often. The performance by Sabine Lisicki at Wimbledon has of course played into our hands. Tennis is generally a big sport and especially popular in our target group. In Germany, the sport was in recent years a sleeping giant. We want to show more tennis events this year. Therefore we will not solely remain with the Fed Cup.”