Relevent Sports Group has taken over the exclusive mandate to sell the commercial rights to UEFA’s national team competitions, ousting incumbent CAA Eleven after a decade and a half.
The nine-year contract runs from 2028 to 2036 and was announced on Tuesday, 13 October. CAA Eleven, the Creative Artists Agency subsidiary that has handled UEFA’s national team marketing since 2012, will continue in the role until Euro 2028 before stepping aside.
Relevent’s remit covers media, sponsorship and licensing rights across two editions of the men’s European Championship, in 2032 and 2036, plus the Nations League and the European qualifiers for the Euros and the FIFA World Cup. The agency will also sell media rights for the Women’s Euros in 2029 and 2033, with sponsorship and licensing for women’s national team properties folding in from the 2030/31 season.
Second UEFA mandate in two years
Relevent, co-founded by Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross, is already deep inside UEFA’s commercial operation. The agency sells Champions League broadcast and sponsorship rights in a separate club competitions deal that runs from 2027 to 2033, a cycle UEFA has said is projected to exceed €5 billion annually.
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Boris Gartner, Relevent’s chief executive, framed the national team mandate as the logical extension of that club competitions work.
“Representing the commercial rights for UEFA’s national team competitions in addition to the men’s club competitions is a defining moment for our company,” Gartner said in a statement to Sportcal.
Zoran Lakovic, UEFA’s deputy general secretary for international affairs, said the governing body was “delighted to team up with Relevent and are looking forward to closely working with them for the benefit of European national team football.”
€1.4bn from Euro 2024 alone
UEFA said it chose Relevent over rival bidders citing “a proven track record representing UEFA club competitions” and “a compelling vision” for how commercial rights in the game will develop, according to Associated Press reporting carried by ABC News.
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The scale of the properties involved is substantial. Euro 2024 in Germany generated €1.4bn in broadcast revenue and €619.9m in commercial income, and the current Nations League and qualifiers cycle running to 2028 is expected to produce around €3bn in combined media and sponsorship income, SportsPro reported.
CAA Eleven stays until Euro 2028
UEFA used its announcement to credit the outgoing agency, saying it would like to “thank CAA Eleven for the trusted partnership since 2012” and expressing “deep gratitude to CAA Eleven’s staff for their dedication and continued commitment to UEFA national team football.”
CAA Eleven’s final tournament in the role will be Euro 2028, co-hosted by England, Ireland, Scotland and Wales. Relevent takes charge of its first property with the men’s Nations League matches beginning in September 2028.
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