New strategic partners for SportsInnovation 2026

6 May 2025 – SportsInnovation, the DFL’s dedicated sports and technology conference, will take place at the MERKUR SPIEL-ARENA in Düsseldorf in March 2026. Düsseldorf event specialist and venue operator D.LIVE/D.SPORTS will once again be the organiser and will host the international summit supported by two new strategic partners: SportsPro and Transform Sports.

London-based media company SportsPro, which specialises in the sports industry with extensive experience in organising international conferences and events, will promote SportsInnovation globally by creating and distributing content across its digital and social channels. SportsPro will also design the conference programme together with Transform Sports, an innovation network based in Hamburg that will be responsible for marketing SportsInnovation 2026. Founded in 2022, Transform Sports specialises in digital transformation in sport and aims to support sports organisations, startups and technology companies in the strategic use of innovative technologies, such as artificial intelligence (AI), and the development of new business models.

The DFL, an innovation leader in professional sport, and D.SPORTS provided the impetus for organising the first edition of SportsInnovation in 2018. Since then, the event has grown steadily with editions in 2022 and 2024, developing into an innovation hub for the sports industry. The most recent edition of the event was attended by more than 2,000 guests. In 2026, the centrepiece of the summit will once again be the Innovation Games, where the latest technologies and visions for the future will be showcased in live applications.

Exhibitors from the fields of sport, media, technology and sports facilities will present their innovative products, services and ideas throughout the event. Past exhibitors include the National Football League (NFL), which previously presented innovations in the areas of referee communication and automated tracking.

As in previous years, invited guests and accredited media will have access to SportsInnovation 2026. The exact date will be announced shortly.