Warner Bros. Discovery announces international cycling coverage for Europe and partnerships for Canada, Australia
Pictures of the peloton from 2023 Milan-San Remo captured by a helicopter(Image credit: Tim de Waele/Getty Images)
Warner Bros. Discovery Sports Europe (WBD) announced their full schedule of international cycling coverage for 2024, which will include 300 days of live action for road, mountain bike, track, BMX and cyclocross disciplines.
The complete portfolio of cycling events from the 2024 Paris Olympic Games is set to be provided across Europe, as well as the Tour de France and Tour de France Femmes.
For the US audience, the WBD subscription-based streaming platforms Discovery+ and Max will become the “home of cycling”, filling a void in race coverage that developed when GCN+ and its related Global Cycling Network app closed in December last year.
Among the March road races available to the US audience on Max are men’s races Bredene Koksijde Classic, Milan-San Remo, Chloet-Pays de la Loire, Classic Brugge-De Panne, E3 Saxo Classic and GP Miguel Induráin, while women’s races include Trofeo Alfredo Binda-Commune di Cittiglio and Classic Brugge-De Panne.
GCN+, owned by WBD, had provided a wide variety of pro cycling race coverage in multiple countries, including the Tour de France and the Classics. The parent company provided subscription access to other channels such as Discovery+ and Eurosport to European viewers several months ago, and in March live cycling coverage began on Max, formerly HBO Max.
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“By bringing to life more than 1,000 live broadcasts throughout the year, including every moment of the Olympic Games Paris 2024 this summer, through the eyes of the most recognisable experts, and harnessing the latest virtual studio innovations in tandem with immersive on-site coverage, we will get the heart of every race, every rider and every story,” Scott Young, the group senior vice president at WBD Sports Europe, overseeing content, production and business operations, said in a company media release.
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“Our commitment to the coverage, promotion and commentary of all cycling is only matched by that of the teams and athletes themselves. Additionally, with expansive coverage through our owned and operated platforms across Europe and USA together with our sublicense partners, we will make cycling accessible for the largest possible audience as the season continues to gather momentum.”
With a series of sub-licence partnerships, WBD will work as a distribution partner for SBS in Australia for the Giro d’Italia and UCI Track Champions League, and distribute cycling coverage in Central and LATMA for Claro, as well as for Zhibo TV in China.
For cycling fans in Canada, WBD will partner with FloSports to stream live cycling racing on FloBikes, to include the Giro d’Italia, Il Lombardia and a selection of women’s UCI WorldTour races. FloSports already provides coverage for the Tour de France, Paris-Roubaix, and UCI World Championships.
FloSports said its subscribers would benefit from WBD’s English and French race commentary, which includes Grand Tour stage winner Robbie McEwen, four-time Tour de France green jersey winner Sean Kelly and former British National Road Race champion Adam Blythe.
In Europe, WBD announced its comprehensive TV coverage would include 4,000 live hours on Eurosport in 19 languages, as well as 500 locally-produced shows during the season. There would also be new Eurosport Cycling YouTube and Instagram channels.
The US rights to broadcast the Tour de France and Tour de France Femmes, and other events managed by ASO, remain with NBC and its brands NBCUniversal and PeacockTV.
A monthly subscription to Max costs $9.99, with ads, or $15.99, without ads, with $99.99 or $149.99 for annual bundles.
Key races broadcast by WBD Sports Europe
April 6-7 Paris Roubaix (women’s and men’s)
April 12 - UCI Mountain Bike World Series begins
April 21 - Liège-Bastogne-Liège
April 29-May 4 - La Vuelta Femenina
May 4-26 - Giro d’Italia
June 29-July 21 - Tour de France
July 7-14 - Giro Donne
July 27-August 7 - Paris Olympic Games cycling
August 12-18 - Touro de France Femmes
August 17-September 8 - La Vuelta a España
August 26-September 1 - UCI Mountain Bike World Championships
August 26-September 1 - UCI Road World Championships
October 4-6 - UCI Mountain Bike World Series finale
October 12 - Il Lombardia
October 16-20 - UCI Track World Championships
Dates TBC - UCI Track Champions League
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Jackie has been involved in professional sports for more than 30 years in news reporting, sports marketing and public relations. She founded Peloton Sports in 1998, a sports marketing and public relations agency, which managed projects for Tour de Georgia, Larry H. Miller Tour of Utah and USA Cycling. She also founded Bike Alpharetta Inc, a Georgia non-profit to promote safe cycling. She is proud to have worked in professional baseball for six years - from selling advertising to pulling the tarp for several minor league teams. She has climbed l'Alpe d'Huez three times (not fast). Her favorite road and gravel rides are around horse farms in north Georgia (USA) and around lavender fields in Provence (France), and some mtb rides in Park City, Utah (USA).
