US-based sports marketing agency Relevent has been appointed to exclusively market the commercial rights to UEFA’s national team competitions spanning from 2028 through 2036. The landmark agreement marks a major shakeup in European soccer administration, ousting longtime partner CAA Eleven and significantly expanding Relevent’s existing sales brief, which already covers the continent’s elite club tournaments.
European football’s governing body announced that Relevent was chosen following a rigorous and competitive tender process that drew bids from several leading international sports marketing agencies. According to UEFA, Relevent demonstrated a deep understanding of its strategic objectives during an extensive evaluation process, ultimately presenting a compelling vision for the long-term commercial development and growth of its national team properties.
Under the terms of the new agreement, Relevent’s comprehensive remit will encompass media, sponsorship, and licensing rights, alongside account management and a suite of associated commercial services. The broad contract spans two full editions of the men’s UEFA European Championship in 2032 and 2036, as well as the high-profile UEFA Nations League and the European qualifiers for both the Euros and the FIFA World Cup.
Furthermore, industry insights indicate that Relevent’s responsibilities will extend to the women’s game. The agency is set to oversee media rights sales for the Women’s Euros in 2029 and 2033, while also taking over sponsorship and licensing rights for UEFA’s women’s national team properties beginning with the 2030/31 season, immediately following the expiration of the governing body’s current agreement with Two Circles.
The transition sees Relevent replace CAA Eleven as the exclusive marketing and sales agency for UEFA’s national team competitions, formally bringing an end to a partnership that will have surpassed the 15-year mark by the conclusion of the current cycle. CAA Eleven had held the prestigious role since 2012, a partnership born when UEFA’s member nations voted to centralise the sale of national team commercial rights for the very first time. The company was originally established in Nyon, Switzerland—the very home of the confederation’s headquarters—by Creative Artists Agency (CAA) with the sole operational purpose of servicing this exclusive relationship.
Reflecting on the conclusion of the long-standing partnership, UEFA issued a formal statement expressing appreciation for the firm’s contributions over the past decade and a half. The governing body stated that it would like to take the opportunity to thank CAA Eleven for the trusted partnership since 2012, while expressing deep gratitude to the agency’s staff for their dedication and continued commitment to UEFA national team football.
Industry analysts note that Relevent successfully captured the massive national team contract, in large part, due to the extraordinarily strong start it has made as the exclusive global sales agency for UEFA’s men’s club competitions, a portfolio that prominently includes the prestigious UEFA Champions League. Relevent took over that high-stakes role from Team Marketing, another longstanding agency partner of European soccer’s governing body, after striking a definitive deal late last year.
Relevent handles the lucrative club competition rights through its purpose-built subsidiary, Relevent Football Partners (RFP). That specialized division has already secured significant media rights increases for the 2027 to 2033 cycle across Europe’s pivotal "big five" domestic markets, as well as across numerous other strategic territories throughout wider Europe and Latin America.
To maximize competition and revenue, the agency pioneered a strategy of launching simultaneous broadcast tenders in several major soccer markets. This deliberate tactic was designed to actively lure global streaming platforms and foster intense bidding wars, a move that successfully culminated in Paramount+ acquiring key broadcasting rights in major territories such as the UK and Germany.
Alongside media distribution, the company has successfully revamped the commercial sponsorship programme for the upcoming club cycle, introducing structural changes that allow brands to commit to longer-term, six-year deals. This modernized approach has already delivered substantial financial uplifts from landmark agreements with major global brands, including beverage giant Anheuser-Busch InBev.
Driven by these commercial successes, UEFA is currently on a strong financial trajectory to exceed €5 billion in annual commercial revenue for its men’s club competitions. The European governing body is undoubtedly hoping that Relevent can successfully replicate this commercial momentum and financial wizardry for its expansive national team properties.
According to UEFA’s most recent financial reporting, cumulative media rights and sponsorship sales for national team tournaments such as the Nations League and European qualifiers are projected to generate approximately €3 billion for the 2022 to 2028 cycle alone. Meanwhile, the most recent men’s showcase, Euro 2024, proved to be a financial powerhouse, delivering an impressive €1.4 billion in broadcast revenue alongside an additional €619.9 million derived directly from commercial income.
Relevent Chief Executive Boris Gartner described the addition of the coveted national team rights as a defining moment for the company’s global growth and market position. He emphasized that these properties rank among the most storied and widely followed in sports worldwide, reflecting the firm’s ongoing, long-term commitment to investing deeply in European football. Gartner added that the agency is deeply grateful to UEFA for its continued trust and remains squarely focused on delivering commercial outcomes that fully reflect the scale, quality, and immense cultural significance of these landmark competitions.
Significantly, Relevent will step into the national team brief under structural circumstances that mirror its entry into the club competition contract, which similarly coincided with the launch of the new Swiss-model format for the Champions League. Starting from the 2028/29 season, the UEFA Nations League will undergo a major operational transition, moving away from the current four-league format to a streamlined structure consisting of three leagues of 18 teams. Each of these leagues will be divided into three groups of six teams, with participating nations playing six matches against five different opponents.
In tandem with the Nations League overhaul, the qualifying pathways for both the European Championship and the FIFA World Cup are similarly shifting toward a tiered structure. These revamped qualification paths will incorporate core elements of the Swiss system already implemented across UEFA’s club competitions, with the overarching strategic goal of creating greater competitive balance, raising the sporting stakes, and producing more frequent, high-profile matches between top-tier European nations as the global game continues to evolve commercially.
