Ice hockey | Start of the DEL: Full halls are not enough

Full ranks, lots of advertising: The Dresden Ice Lions (blue) in a duel with the Kölner Haien. Photo: dpa/Robert Michael 18,112 spectators per home game: The Kölner Haie improved their own “European record” in the last main round. That's an order of magnitude by which they surpass many clubs in the North American NHL. A sport that fills the halls like this should also be able to reach more people outside of its strongholds: This is the hope of the German Ice Hockey League (DEL), which starts the new season this week.

On Thursday, the Eisbären Berlin will host the Straubing Tigers as defending champions. It starts at 7.30 p.m. in the arena at Ostbahnhof. The remaining twelve teams will play their first league game of the 2026/2027 season at the same time on Friday. The Krefeld Penguins are back, returning to the DEL after four years.

The Berliners can achieve something that no club has achieved since the DEL was founded in 1994: four championship titles in a row. However, they will have to make the next attempt without successful coach Serge Aubin. His successor Éric Dubois was recently only assistant coach in Ingolstadt and is now taking over a DEL team as head coach for the first time. A risk. Something new is also beginning in goal: Jack LaFontaine and Jonas Neffin are supposed to pick up the slack. With Ty Ronning and Leonhard Pföderl, two important attackers remain on board.

Rival Mannheim has turned directly to the defending champion for its next attempt at the championship: Jake Hildebrand, who was last champion three times with Berlin, is now in goal for the runner-up. The Eagles also gain experience from three successful Berlin title hunts. Three wins from the first four games of the Champions Hockey League give the new team additional momentum.

The home World Cup lasts a good two weeks. The DEL needs attention for a whole season.

Time is running out for Moritz Müller in Cologne. The 39-year-old captain has extended his contract for another season. A championship would be the crowning achievement of his long career with the Sharks. After losing the final in 2025 and the semi-final in 2026, they are making the next attempt. Marcel Noebels from Berlin and Daniel Fischbuch from Iserlohn are supposed to help. The people of Cologne have gained a lot of experience with this.

Dominik Kahun has already celebrated three championships with Munich. The national player returns after eight years in North America and Switzerland. “I want to lift a trophy here again,” he explained when his move from Lausanne was announced. Munich is now entering its third season in the new arena in the Olympic Park. The larger frame is there, as is the sporty demands.

How popular the German audience is was also shown in Munich in August. The North American professional league NHL presented a multi-year partnership with FC Bayern. Leon Draisaitl and John-Jason Peterka were there. The world's best ice hockey league is also looking to be closer to football in order to grow in Germany.

However, the NHL offensive is causing great anger for DEL managing director Gernot Tripcke. He particularly criticizes the lack of a vote on the guest games of the Ottawa Senators and Chicago Blackhawks on December 18th and 20th in Düsseldorf. They come at an attractive time for local clubs, just before Christmas. “So far it has been isolated and far away from German ice hockey,” Tripcke told dpa. He fears that the German leagues will lose viewers and attention.

The question also arises as to how the DEL can reach additional viewers when it comes to its own television offering. The pay TV channel Magenta Sport broadcasts all 364 main round games and all playoffs. On Sundays, DF1 shows a game from the main round at 4:30 p.m. as well as selected playoff games. The opening game between Berlin and Straubing can also be seen free of charge on Magenta Sport. However, if you want to follow the entire season, you will need a subscription.

A regular, freely accessible ice hockey magazine as a stream and as a TV show could possibly help to appeal to people beyond the regular paying customers. Stories about the players, the rivalries and the special features of the locations would give them a reason to take a closer look. Anyone who knows little about ice hockey needs someone who can explain the sport in an understandable way.

The DEL could also start with its external representation: less advertising on the ice rink and jerseys, more attention to its own club culture. After 32 years, the question arises as to whether roosters and wild wings wouldn't have been better left as something edible. With Ingolstadt and Augsburg there are two Panthers - that's not particularly distinctive. How would it be if the Mannheim Ice and Roller Sports Club (MERC) competed against the Augsburg Ice Skating Club (AEV) again, with a maximum of one sponsor on the jersey? In addition, newly designed logos that tie in with the club's history. After all, it would have more narrative value than the next animal name.

The 2027 Home World Cup offers one of the opportunities where club stories can be told to a larger audience. The tournament begins on May 13th with Germany against Switzerland in the Schalke football arena, followed by games in Düsseldorf and Mannheim until May 30th. It will be exciting for the DEL to see how many of the World Cup spectators are then interested in their clubs. The home World Cup lasts a good two weeks. The DEL wants attention for a whole season.

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