NEW LONG-TERM DEAL SEES TENNIS AUSTRALIA AND DISCOVERY EXTEND AUSTRALIAN OPEN PARTNERSHIP FOR A DECADE

Discovery Sports today announced it has reached an agreement with Tennis Australia to broadcast the Australian Open live and exclusively on a pan-European basis through to 2031.

The long-term agreement, commencing in 2022, includes all linear and digital rights and will extend Eurosport’s association with the first Grand Slam on the tennis calendar to more than 25 years having broadcast its first Australian Open in 1995.

As part of the 10-year agreement, Discovery will use its much-loved global channels, platforms and brands, including Eurosport and streaming service discovery+* - the home of real-life entertainment - to take the Australian Open to a bigger and broader audience than ever before. In addition to world-class tennis, Discovery will collaborate with Tennis Australia on a wide range of lifestyle and entertainment content to tell more of the rich stories from the tournament and go beyond the sport alone. Renowned around the world for showcasing real-life, non-fiction content spanning categories as diverse and universally popular as Home, Adventure, Travel, Food, Nature, Environment and Science, Discovery and Tennis Australia will aim to engage the whole household audience to help grow the tournament over the next decade.

Eurosport will also hold exclusive rights to AO lead-up events, including the Adelaide International ATP tournament on a pan-European basis, offering the world’s players vital match practice ahead of the Australian Open in Melbourne.

Andrew Georgiou, President of Sports, Discovery, said: “We are thrilled to partner with Tennis Australia and deepen our association with them around what is one of the jewels in the crown of the tennis season. We have an incredible heritage in delivering leading tennis coverage for broad audiences enjoying Grand Slam events on our platforms, covering all the stories that matter on and off the court on whichever platform people chose to follow the tournament. 

“Extending our relationship with the Australian Open on a long-term basis mean we can take this even further, utilising the full breadth and depth of Discovery’s global channels, platforms and brands - including Eurosport and our streaming service discovery+ - to work with Tennis Australia and reach new audiences, around new and different stories, to play an even bigger part in helping grow the tournament.”

Craig Tiley, CEO, Tennis Australia, and Tournament Director, Australian Open, added: “For more than 25 years Eurosport has helped showcase the best of the Australian Open into Europe and we are delighted to extend and expand this historic partnership. 

“We look forward to bringing our innovative coverage to life through Eurosport and Discovery’s free to air, subscription TV and multiple online destinations, and telling the stories of the players both on the court and beyond. both in January and throughout the year.”

During Australian Open 2021, record-breaking audiences were reported for Eurosport’s streaming service, via the Eurosport App, with a 36% increase in video starts versus 2020 and an 84% uplift in minutes watched versus 2020. Sizeable increases in unique visitors for Eurosport’s digital platforms during the Australian Open (+61% vs 2020) were also reported with significant growth registered in the UK (+244% vs 2020), Italy (+90%), Germany (+53%) and Spain (+25%).

Discovery is currently broadcasting the US Open on Eurosport and discovery+* live on a pan-European basis (excluding UK and Ireland).

*discovery+ is available in Denmark, Finland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, Spain and United Kingdom.