Eurosport adds WTA right to Russian portfolio

Discovery-owned Eurosport has added the exclusive rights for WTA tennis tournaments to its tennis portfolio in Russia.

The new agreement comes into effect from January 2020 and will see Eurosport cover every major WTA event for the next four years, with up to 47 tournaments worldwide and more than 800 matches produced for broadcast each year available on Eurosport’s online streaming service, Eurosport Player.

Comprehensive coverage of the WTA’s 21 premier tournaments will be available on Eurosport 1, with up to 350 hours of live coverage from WTA top-tier events, and Eurosport Gold, which will carry 900 hours the WTA’s remaining Premier competitions.

“Expanding our exclusive position in tennis is a major win for fans in Russia, who will enjoy enhanced coverage of the best players in the world, and local heroes, week-in, week-out. With ten Russian players inside the top 100 in the WTA Rankings, interest in tennis has never been greater and Eurosport will power people’s passion for the sport by delivering the best experiences and content across all screens,” said Laurent Prud’homme, SVP rights acquisitions and syndication at Eurosport.

“We are delighted to partner with the WTA and look forward to maximising the scale of our relationship to super-serve tennis fans in Russia on all Eurosport platforms and devices. Adding exclusive WTA events to our unprecedented tennis portfolio and innovative coverage of all four Grand Slams and the ATP Tour, means Eurosport truly is the Home of Tennis in Russia.”

Micky Lawler, WTA president, said:”The WTA is thrilled to have partnered with Eurosport to become the exclusive broadcast partner in Russia. Russia is one of our top global markets with a history of producing exceptional talent, and we are delighted to join forces with Eurosport in telling the exciting WTA player stories to the Russian fans.”