EUROSPORT REPORTS STRONG DIGITAL AND LINEAR NUMBERS FOR FIRST WEEK OF 2021 AUSTRALIAN OPEN

Significant growth in viewership and digital engagement has followed a spectacular first week for Eurosport’s Australian Open coverage throughout Europe.*

More Fans Come to Eurosport as Digital Engagement Up Triple Digits
Eurosport’s exclusive live coverage of the Australian Open has been complemented by best-in-class storytelling across its digital platforms. Fans visiting local Eurosport websites have driven triple-digit increases (unique visitors versus 2020) in Germany (+158%), Italy (+137%) and the UK (+223%), where users have caught up with the latest news from Melbourne Park and followed the thoughts of Eurosport’s team of tennis experts throughout the tournament.

Similarly healthy increases have been seen on Eurosport’s web platforms in Romania (+56%), Spain (+47%), Norway (+46%) and Sweden (+32%). This has been part of an 81% increase in unique users across Eurosport’s top 11 markets** spanning the first seven days of the tournament.

Fans Choosing Television Boosting Audiences in 2021
Across its top 11 markets** in Europe, Eurosport’s coverage on its linear channels reported significant double-digit uplift in average audience numbers versus 2020 with Eurosport 1 and Eurosport 2 registering a 41% and 28% increase respectively.

The success of local heroes at the Australian Open has once again played an important part in strong audience numbers with Poland reporting a triple-figure increase (+276%) owing to the performances of up-and-coming teenager Iga Swiatek.

Romanian (+66% versus 2020), German (+42%) and Spanish (+33%) audiences*** all tuned in huge numbers to watch Eurosport’s coverage featuring the likes of Simona Halep, Alex Zverev and Rafa Nadal supplemented by world-class expert analysis from Boris Becker, Mats Wilander and Tim Henman from the mixed-reality, award-winning Cube studio.

The Eurosport Cube Keeping Fans Close to The Action
Innovation continues to drive Eurosport’s coverage of the Grand Slam, with a host of players including eight-time Australian Open champion Novak Djokovic, Polish star Iga Swiatek and Spanish icon Rafael Nadal all paying visits to the mixed-reality studio so far.

Incredibly, the interview featuring Nadal saw him teleported in from the Rod Laver Arena and interviewer Alex Corretja teleported into the conversation from Madrid with the Cube itself based in London.

Scott Young, Eurosport SVP Content and Production, said: “It’s fantastic to see fans once again consuming our coverage of the Australian Open in their millions across Europe both as we aim to deliver world-class tennis alongside world-class analysis, giving them the ultimate Grand Slam experience.

“We are not afraid to keep pushing the boundaries of innovation and feedback from the industry and fans alike on the award-winning Cube continues to be incredibly positive. We can’t wait to showcase what it will look like during our coverage of the Olympic Games this summer.”

The 2021 Australian Open concludes on Sunday, with live coverage throughout the tournament on Eurosport and Eurosport App across Europe.

* First seven days of the Australian Open (8 February-14 February 2021)
**Top 11 markets: Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Sweden, Denmark, UK, Netherlands, Romania, Poland. The Australian Open is available to watch on discovery+ and Eurosport 2 in Norway.
***Average audience numbers