DW’s Kick off! scored big at the world’s largest sports film festival in Milan. The DW documentary, “50 years of Bundesliga”, won an “Infront award” and a “mention d’honneur” at Sport Movies and TV – The 31st annual FICTS fest. The contest in Milan is the final round featuring the best films out of the year-long FICTS world challenge ­­– a 15 round circuit of film competitions held in different member countries all over the world. There were nearly 1,000 entries for the 2013 FICTS world challenge. The Fédération Internationale Cinéma Télévision Sportifs (International federation of sports cinema and television) is based in Milan and has 113 member countries from every part of the world. The contest is recognized by the International Olympic Committee.

The five-part documentary series follows the German national soccer league through five decades of hard fought contests, rivalries, defeats and triumphs which turned it into the beloved institution it is today. That two German teams squared off in the final of the 2013 Champions league is a testament to the current superior status of the German national league on the world stage. The documentary has already been acquired by broadcasters in 30 countries and is a must-see for every fan of German soccer.