Relaunch of the BVB website – The new ClubHub
How a „digital clubhouse“ works
BVB stands for passion, tradition, and closeness – values that we have translated into a digital experience together with adesso that inspires millions of fans worldwide.
A big thank you to the entire adesso team for the trusting and inspiring collaboration! It shows once again what is possible when digital strategy, UX design, and technological implementation go hand in hand.
Technology as a foundation: choosing Adobe Experience Manager
Complex requirements, clear decision
Borussia Dortmund is not just a soccer club – it is a media company, an event provider, a shop, and a community manager. Requirements for a new platform ranged from scalability during peak loads (e.g., when launching a new home jersey or starting advance ticket sales for a Champions League final) to deep personalization and seamless integration with third-party systems.
Industry: Associations
Solutions
- AEM Sites
- AEM Assets
- Adobe Analytics
- Adobe Core Components
Adobe Experience Manager as part
of Adobe Experience Cloud
Results
+13% more organic traffic
+300% longer dwell time
+39% more page views per session
+231% higher click-through rate on advertising banners
-60% shorter loading times
Challenges
Global brand, local roots
BVB was founded on Borsigplatz in Dortmund's Nordstadt district – an emotional connection that remains strong to this day. At the same time, Borussia Dortmund has long been a global phenomenon: millions of fans worldwide follow the club exclusively online – their entire contact with the club takes place online.
The challenge: How can the closeness, emotionality, and sense of community associated with BVB be brought to life digitally – for an ultra in the south stand as well as for a BVB fan in the USA?
Increasing touchpoints & digital requirements
In recent years, BVB's digital presence has grown rapidly – from BVB TV and the Kids Club to eFootball, merchandise, and international fan offerings. However, many of these platforms were standalone, isolated solutions.
The challenge was to consolidate these heterogeneous offerings, break down technological silos, and create a central digital platform that is scalable, future-proof, and flexible – while enabling personalized experiences.
The advantages at a glance
1. Technological basis
Scalability: Clustered pod architecture for automatic scaling during traffic peaks
Automatic updates: Always up to date thanks to Adobe Cloud Service
Reliability: Zero downtime thanks to smart infrastructure
2. Consolidation and uniform look and feel
Consolidation of many individual solutions on a single technological basis
Uniform design language
Centralized content management and use of Adobe Core Components
3. Optimized Customer Journeys
Personalized content based on user profiles in the future
Optimized conversion paths
4. New business models
Direct sales from editorial content
Networked content with shop, ticketing, media platforms
Implementation by a strong trio
Three partners made this success possible:
BVB – with clear requirements management and vision
adesso – UX/UI design, conception, project management
eggs unimedia – long-standing Adobe partner with in-depth expertise in AEM
This partnership gave rise to ClubHub – BVB's new digital platform.
ClubHub: The new central platform
ClubHub forms the heart of the digital BVB world. The aim is to direct the more than 68 million followers on social media to this platform – ideally as logged-in users with single sign-on. This not only creates a better fan experience, but also a solid basis for targeted monetization – especially in a cookie-less future.
„From day one, the collaboration was cooperative and inspiring. The German Brand Award for ‘Brand Experience of the Year’ confirms that we have created something special together.“
Franziska Schelter, eggs unimedia
„The new ClubHub is much more than just a website for us – it has become our digital heart. adesso and eggs unimedia have managed to translate our DNA as a club into a digital experience that inspires our fans worldwide.“
Alex Mühl, Borussia Dortmund
Project scope and features
Design & structure
- New corporate design (CI/CD) by adesso
- Multi-site management with AEM
- All content centrally located under one domain, available in multiple languages
Media & Content
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Dynamic Media & Smart Cropping: Automated cropping of images & videos depending on the device
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Publication Workflow: Decentralized, cross-departmental approval process
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Content Migration:
- 30,000+ news articles
- All player and match data
- Multilingual, centrally maintained with content fragments
Integrations
- Salesforce (user management & login)
- Opta (live match data via microservices)
- Consent Manager & Adition (consent and ad management)
- Link to club platform & app
Results & Successes
Components & Performance
Development of around 50 UI components
Optimization of performance, UX, and accessibility (Lighthouse Score)
Awards
Winner: German Brand Award – Brand Experience of the Year
In Numbers
+13% more organic traffic
+300% longer dwell time
+39% more page views per session
+231% higher click-through rate on advertising banners
-60% shorter loading times
What's next?
ClubHub is just the beginning. Expansion is in full swing:
- Personalization with Adobe Target
- Analytics-based optimization of the user experience
- Shop integration for seamless purchases
- Digital signage connection for stadiums and club environments
- Generative AI for automated content creation and personalization
Gold: User Experience category Conclusion
With the new ClubHub, Borussia Dortmund has lived up to its brand promise of „Echte Liebe“ (True Love) in the digital world as well. The combination of technological excellence, emotional storytelling, and an outstanding user experience creates a digital experience that sets standards worldwide – for fans, for partners, and for the club itself.
Success story (German only)
Gain exciting insights into our projects and successes.