Eurosport's end of an era in Britain casts doubts on future free-to-air coverage
Eurosport is to disappear from British screens, with the longtime home of events such as the Tour de France rebranding after 35 years.
On 28 February, Eurosport 1 and 2 will be merged into TNT Sports, as the group owned by Warner Brothers Discovery (WBD) reorganises its offering in the UK. It's a move executives say will both boost and simplify choices for sports fans, but leaves unanswered questions as to what free-to-air offerings will still be available to viewers.
'Combining Eurosport and TNT Sports content in the UK and Ireland will enable us to offer a single, premium viewing experience for sports fans,' said Scott Young, senior vice-president at WBD Sports Europe. 'We know audiences are looking for a slightly simpler journey on where to find the sport they love. This move will also continue to best deliver value for our leagues and federation partners, as we continue our 35 years plus commitment to investment and championing of sport on our screens.'
Originally a co-production between Sky TV and the European Broadcasting Union when it was launched in 1989, Eurosport went on to become a staple of sports broadcasting in 50 European countries. The new plans apply only to the UK and Ireland, with channels continuing as before elsewhere and the same content being shared across both brands. 'We're not saying you'll never see a Eurosport microphone,' says Young, but the aim is now to use the 45,000 hours of live sport in Eurosport's archive to keep viewers watching TNT Sports.
Since rebranding BT Sport as TNT in 2023, WBD has built a brand as a 'fan-first broadcaster' with a monthly reach of over 12 million viewers in the UK. It is also coming off the back of a successful 2024 where TNT delivered growth in rugby audiences and, through Eurosport, encyclopaedic coverage of the Olympics that was previously the domain of the BBC. The BBC and WBD are to continue to share rights to the Olympics going forward, including the Winter Olympics in Milan-Cortina in 2026. But other sports will be waiting to see how TNT Sports deals with an expanded portfolio of rights.
The Tour de France will be exclusively on TNT Sports in 2026, with ITV having lost the rights. Young said that some coverage will be screened on the free-to-air channel Quest, but would not commit to broadcasting full stages. 'You'll see parts of the Tour on Quest,' he said. 'I think what I can say about the Tour de France is we're now on how we really innovate how you watch it. Multiple streams [of footage] are coming out of that event, how do you multicast different ways of watching the Tour de France? The Tour will get more immersive coverage from 2026 onwards on our platform.'
Reports also suggest TNT is set to acquire the rights to the Six Nations from 2026, with the RugbyPass website claiming the broadcaster would take over the role of the BBC, with highlights packages then moving to free-to-air channels as mandated by the code related to listed sporting events.
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Young told reporters: 'We are definitely looking at the Six Nations,' although a TNT spokesperson has played down the stories, saying: 'While we think the Six Nations is the best international rugby competition in the world, its important partnership with free-to-air television across the UK and Ireland, but particularly in markets like Wales and Ireland, would make our involvement very challenging.'
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