Bundesliga live in Kiswahili and Hausa

Beginning August 27, 2016, commentators will follow one match live on radio in DW's two most successful African broadcast languages, Kiswahili and Hausa. That's the agreement made between the German football league DFL and Germany's international broadcaster DW.

DW is responding to the enormous interest expressed by African football fans to follow the German football league, which is filled with players from both the world championship team and stars from across the African continent. By offering the commentary in the widely-spoken Hausa and Kiswahili languages, DW will reach people in Nigeria, Niger, Tanzania and Kenya. The radio commentary is in addition to the considerable television coverage offered by StarTimes, the partner of the DFL in Sub-Saharan Africa.

With this offering, DW is expanding its radio sports reporting as two sports journalists from the Hausa and Kiswahili services will moderate one live match every Saturday. In the broadcast from 15:25 until 17:30 (CEST/CET) DW will deliver background information and further results from the day to their listeners in East and West Africa.

DW's radio programming in Sub-Saharan Africa is very popular. Broadcasting in six languages – Kiswahili, Hausa, Amharic, French, English and Portuguese – Germany's international broadcaster reaches a wide audience. The programs are broadcast via hundreds of FM partners as well as short wave and satellite radio. Despite limited access to television and mobile networks, nearly 40 million people regularly listen to DW's radio programs, most in Kiswahili or Hausa.

“The latest offering of DFL game broadcasts by DW is a win for everyone. Deutsche Welle will reach a targeted group of football fans and can get people excited about the Bundesliga in countries where radio plays an important role,” said DW Director General Peter Limbourg. DW partners outside of the areas accessed by the Hausa and Kiswahili programs have likewise expressed interest.

DW users can also find information about football in Germany online in numerous languages. For English, go to dw.com/bundesliga. On television, the Bundesliga football gets rolling twice a week on “Kick off!” (which can only be viewed outside of German-speaking territories). On September 5, 2016, “Kick off!” will also show a special film about the African Bundesliga legends Pablo Thiam and Anthony Baffoe, two exceptional football players with very different professional careers and life paths.

August 23, 2016

Photos of the commentators: https://www.flickr.com/photos/deutschewelle/collections/72157667576946466/