Marcus Diekmann and Johannes Kliesch launch live show for founders

Six start-ups, three jurors and live feedback via chat: that's Founders League. Diekmann and Kliesch want to give founders more reach with this format.

Digital entrepreneur Marcus Diekmann and Snocks founder Johannes Kliesch have created a live show for founders from Germany, Austria and Switzerland. They have founded the "Founders League" company together for this purpose. Benjamin Diedering, Managing Director of the content production studio BDX Media, and Julian Rauch are supporting the two with the management.

In the live show, six selected start-ups pitch their business ideas to a three-person jury. Viewers can take part in the show via chat. The series starts on June 1, 2022 and will be broadcast on LinkedIn and YouTube. Start-ups can now apply to take part in the first episode on the Founders League website. There will also be 75 audience seats for the production in Leipzig.

Diekmann and Kliesch are aiming to reach over 100,000 viewers with the first pilot episode. The team is then planning a first season with eight to ten episodes for the fall. With Founders League, Diekmann and Kliesch want to give start-ups more reach. "From my own experience, I can say that no matter how good your idea is, if you don't have the right contacts and can't build up reach quickly, you'll struggle," says Johannes Kliesch. "That's exactly what we want to change with the Founders League and create a platform where courageous founders can gain access to a network that is relevant to them."