Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD), the multinational media and entertainment giant, will show the US Open grand slam tennis tournament in France via its Eurosport network through a deal that follows its recent pan-European agreement with the United States Tennis Association (USTA).
Last month (February), WBD announced it had agreed a five-year rights extension to show the US Open in 45 markets across Europe, excluding the UK and Ireland, Austria, France, Germany, Italy, Spain, and Russia.
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Now, in a separate agreement brokered by international sports marketing agency IMG, WBD has expanded its rights to include coverage in France starting from this year’s tournament from August 28 to September 10.
WBD said the deal covers all matches during the tournament, which will be aired across all Eurosport platforms, including linear channels Eurosport 1 and Eurosport 2, as well as the Eurosport app and eurosport.fr website.
Kristen Corio, chief commercial officer at the USTA, said: “The US Open delivers a spectacular showcase of the world’s best tennis players, on the grandest stage in New York City each year, to millions of fans worldwide.
“We’re delighted to continue the relationship with Eurosport France and to connect its vast audience to the US Open.”
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By GlobalDataWBD’s five-year renewal with USTA includes live and highlights rights with every match on every court available to stream on the Discovery+ platform and the Eurosport App in addition to live television coverage during the tournament on the linear Eurosport 1 and 2 channels.
It will also see Eurosport extend its association with the year’s final grand slam beyond 25 years after first broadcasting the tournament in 2001.
Pierre Branco, general manager of WBD France, Benelux, and Africa, said: “Eurosport is more than ever the tennis channel.
“For almost 25 years, Eurosport has been bringing the most memorable moments in the history of the US Open. This new partnership allows us to continue to write the history of the US Grand Slam tournament through all our broadcast and digital channels and to offer a complete experience with the unrivaled expertise of the group’s French and international talent.
“This underlines Eurosport France’s reputation as the home of so many of the biggest international tennis events on the calendar.”
WBD has a vast tennis portfolio and broadcasts over 720 hours of live action per year across all platforms including coverage of every grand slam, the ATP season in 10 markets, the Laver Cup, and every Olympic tennis match.
The company also holds exclusive rights to the three other grand slam events – the Australian Open in Europe, Roland-Garros (excluding France), and Wimbledon in 12 markets, plus highlights in the UK and Ireland.
For last year’s edition of the US Open, WBD reported record audience engagement in many major markets. This includes record streaming figures on its digital platforms, doubling its audience year-on-year on Discovery+, and securing the highest-ever viewership on Eurosport 2.
