SR 1

Logo of SR 1

SR 1 is the successor to the first public radio station to broadcast in Saarland after World War II. Originally launched in 1946 as "Radio Saarbrücken" under French supervision, it went on air as "Europawelle Saar" of Saarländischer Rundfunk (SR) on January 2, 1964. Today, renamed SR 1, it is a radio channel primarily received in Saarland, broadcasting a programme consisting largely of contemporary pop music, supplemented by news bulletins every half hour, weather and traffic reports, and shorter commentary pieces with predominantly regional relevance. The core target audience is 30 to 49 years old.


As the station with the most listeners in Saarland, SR 1 has increased its daily reach for the third consecutive year according to ma II Audio 2025, now reaching 25.1% in its broadcasting area, equivalent to 246,000 listeners (Monday-Sunday). According to www.sr.de, SR 1 thereby ranks "third among all individual programmes in Germany and maintains the top position among ARD pop stations.”

Key Facts

Audience Share33.8 %
Ownership TypePublic
Content Typecontent_Licence fee
Active Transparency
company/channel informs proactively and comprehensively about its ownership, data is constantly updated and easily verifiable

Ownership

Ownership Structure

SR 1 is part of Saarländischer Rundfunk (SR). SR has no owner in the literal sense, as it is financed by the public through a broadcasting fee (currently €18.36 per month) as part of the public broadcasting system.

Voting Rights"Saarländischer Rundfunk (SR) is organized as a public institution and follows the typical structure of ARD regional broadcasters, with a director general, broadcasting council, and administrative board. At the top is the director general, currently Martin Grasmück, who has overall responsibility and determines SR's programming, strategy, and organization. The Broadcasting Council is the central supervisory body in which various social groups in Saarland are represented; it monitors programming principles, elects the director general, and advises on the fundamental development of the institution. The Administrative Board primarily controls the SR's finances and economic affairs, approves the budget, and supervises the director general's management in economic matters. Translated with DeepL.com (free version)"
Individual Owner

Media Companies / Groups

Facts

Founding Year1964

Founded as "Europawelle Saar" on January 2, 1964.

CEO
  • Martin Grasmück

    Martin Grasmück (born 1970) worked at Saarländischer Rundfunk (SR) as a student and built his career there. In 2008, he became head of the Director-General's office at SR, in 2015 became Deputy Programme Director/Head of Radio and Programme Director of SR 1. Elected in the seventh ballot, Grasmück became Intendant (Director-General) of the broadcaster in 2021.

Editor-In-Chief
  • Thomas Rosch

    Thomas Rosch (born 1967) has been Head of the Pop Unit at SR since 2021, which includes SR 1 among others. Until 1994, he worked at "Radio Salü" (Saarbrücken), and until 1997 at "Delta Radio Kiel" as presenter and production manager. He has worked at SR 1 since 1994, initially as a freelance contributor, employed full-time from 2010, and since 2018 has been head of the Music and Entertainment Programme Group. In this role, he is responsible for, among other things, budget planning and monitoring, programme management, and marketing of the Pop Unit.

ContactFranz-Mai-Straße
66121 Saarbrücken
Germany
info@sr.de
+49 (0) 681 602 - 0
www.sr.de
RevenueMissing Data
Operating ProfitMissing Data
Advertising (in % of total funding)Missing Data
Market ShareMissing Data
Headlines
Meta Data

For audience share, the daily reach Monday-Sunday of Radio ma 2025 Audio II for the respective state's broadcasting area was used and limited to classical radio.

Financial data is indicated as “missing data” (m .d.) because financial statements are only prepared at the level of the broadcasting corporations. Individual data on stations is not published.

Sources
Documents (PDF)
  • Geschäftsbericht 2023 Saarländischer Rundfunk
    File