EBU rejigs sport department for major sports coverage

The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) has reorganised its sport department team in the lead up to the 2026 Olympic Games and other major sport events.

Andreas Aristodemou will assume the role of director of Olympics, succeeding Pascal Fratellia who left the company in April.

Aristodemou who joined the company in 2015, has held key leadership positions in Eurovision Sport, including head of summer sports, where he played a key role in the acquiring the rights to the Olympic Games for the period 2026-2032.

In his new role, he will be responsible for all od the International Olympic Committee’s matters and report to Glen Killane, executive director of EBU Sport.

Frédéric Sanz has been promoted to the newly expanded position of head of summer sports and cycling.

Since joining the EBU summer sports team in 2015, Sanz has served as senior sports rights manager and head of cycling operations. He has overseen the broadcaster’s properties such as the Tour de France, Vuelta, and UCI Cycling World Championships. He also played a key role in the acquisition process for the Olympic Games rights.

In his expanded role, Sanz will oversee the entire summer sports portfolio, including athletics, aquatics and gymnastics and will continue to report to Adrian Fikentscher, director of acquisitions, sales and partnerships at EBU Sport.

Whilst, Jean-Baptiste Casta will serve as director of business operations and the recently launched Eurovision Sport streaming platform. In his new role, he’ll also report to Killane.

Casta also joined EBU in 2015 as senior sports rights manager of football from Sportfive International. Since then, he has been head of business development and head of strategy & business operations. He also played a major role in EBU’s strategic projects and more recently in the development of the sport streamer.

EBU said the transitions will be facilitated through a gradual handover period effective from June 1 2024.

Commenting on the appointments, Killane said: “These appointments are an acknowledgment of the wonderful talent we have in our Sports Team at the EBU which has consistently achieved positive results in a fiercely competitive arena. We remain totally focussed on delivering top results for our Members and our partners. The media landscape is changing rapidly, just as we are to ensure we continue to succeed.”