DEAG Reports Stable Business For First Half Of 2026
Deutsche Entertainment AG (DEAG) performed well in the first half of financial year 2026, after consistently pursuing its buy-and-build strategy and increasing its interest in successful Group companies.
Group revenue for the first six months amounted to EUR 157.4 million ($182.5 million), slightly above the previous year’s figure of EUR 155.4 million ($180.2 million). In the second quarter of 2026, DEAG generated revenue of approximately EUR 95.2 million ($110.4 million), compared to EUR 88.4 million ($102.5 million) in the previous year.
At EUR 6.5 million ($7.5 million), EBITDA for the first half of the year was virtually unchanged from the previous year’s figure of EUR 6.6 million ($7.7 million). In the second quarter, EBITDA was EUR 4.4 million ($5.1 million), significantly higher than the previous year’s figure of EUR 3.1 million ($3.6 million).
In the first six months of 2026, DEAG invested in the expansion of selected event formats and in the further digitalization and automation of its business processes, including ticketing technologies, data-driven audience analytics and AI-supported event management solutions.
“The company intends to continue these investments in order to further increase the scalability of its business model and generate additional synergies between its ticketing and events businesses,” a summary of its half-year earnings statement reads.
DEAG strengthened its strong market position in the festival business in the first half of 2026 by acquiring a majority stake in the Juicy Beats music festival. In addition, the company increased its stake in the EDM festival Airbeat One from 55% to 75%. Moreover, the company acquired all minority interests in live entertainment promoter Wizard Live during the reporting period and acquired a majority stake in connected: Events & Live Marketing GmbH.
Concert and tour highlights from the reporting period included Die Toten Hosen, Iron Maiden, Yungblud, Foreigner, Thomas Anders, and Böhse Onkelz, who sold more than 435,000 tickets on their latest run.
Shows such as Cavalluna and Disney on Ice were also major successes, as were the popular “An Evening with…” format and the international literature festival lit.COLOGNE in the Spoken Word & Literary Events segment.
In the third and fourth quarters, DEAG’s events calendar includes, among others, concerts and tours by Zucchero, Duran Duran, Alison Moyet, Tokio Hotel, Judas Priest, Nena and Simone Sommerland. The Spoken Word & Literary Events calendar features evenings with former U.S. President Barack Obama and actor Michael Douglas.
In 2027, the concert line-up will include Don Omar, Florent Pagny, Sabaton, Die Ärzte, Andrea Bocelli and Five Finger Death Punch, among others.
DEAG expects group revenues to exceed EUR 400 million ($464 million) at the end of the financial year 2026. As expected, revenue for the current financial year will be below the previous year’s level due to the typical volatility in live entertainment and DEAG’s specific event calendar.
For the years to come, DEAG aims to continue its growth trajectory. Its objective remains unchanged: to sustainably increase its EBITDA margin in the medium term while driving both profitability and strategic growth.
Ticket sales in 2026 are expected to remain at a similarly high level as in the previous year. As of the end of June 2026, DEAG had already sold more than 6 million tickets for events in 2026 and 2027. The majority of these were sold via the Group’s own ticketing platforms.
“Our performance in the first half of the year was fully in line with our expectations. With a strong event pipeline and high visibility for the coming quarters, we are looking ahead with confidence and believe we are well on the way to achieving our long-term goals,” commented Detlef Kornett, Group CEO of DEAG.
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