Overview
- RTL confirmed on Sunday that no new episodes of Top Dog Germany are currently planned and the format is on hiatus rather than formally cancelled.
- The show had been a reliable summer fixture produced by RTL Studios and delivered about 1.3 million viewers with more than 11% market share in the 14–49 age group over its run.
- RTL will replace the Friday-evening slot with the German adaptation of Gladiators and keep Top Dog’s presenters Laura Wontorra, Frank Buschmann and Jan Köppen as hosts of the new show.
- Gladiators is already available on Prime Video and has reportedly underperformed there so this scheduling change carries both opportunity and risk for RTL’s audience draws.
- RTL says it may revive Top Dog in the future, and the switch highlights a broader programming shift in Cologne toward more physical, event-style summer formats that could affect production priorities and viewer choices.