The Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD) media giant has expanded its partnership with German cable-TV operator Deutsche Netzmarketing (DNMG), to bring its Eurosport 1 linear network to member cable companies.
The 210 DNMG-member municipal cable operators across Germany will now be able to distribute Eurosport 1 at no extra cost to its wide range of customers, growing the network’s reach to millions more consumers.
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Speaking on the deal, WBD Deutschland senior vice president for commercial Matthias Heinze said: “This partnership with DNMG is a major success, as it allows us to instantly expand Eurosport 1’s reach within DNMG’s networks, bringing top-tier sports to even more fans in Germany.”
Eurosport is now one of over 50 TV broadcasters that benefit from similar agreements with DNMG, covering around 5.9 million households nationally, a list that includes fellow sports broadcaster DF1.
In Germany, Eurosport 1’s coverage includes cycling’s elite Tour de France and the rest of its top-line Grand Tours, tennis’ elite Grand Slam major tournaments, the summer and winter Olympic Games, motorsports’ 24 Hours of Le Mans, and more.
WBD’s strategy of expanding the reach of the Eurosport brand in Germany stands in contrast to its position in the UK, where it is set to wind up the brand altogether, merging them with its TNT Sport pay-TV networks.
The change, which will take place as of February 28, means that the total line-up of live sport as well as non-live content currently available on Eurosport in the UK – including top-tier grand slam tennis, and grand tour cycling – will instead be viewable on the various TNT Sports platforms, as well as through WBD’s Discovery+ UK streaming platform.
This puts WBD’s range of sporting content – live action as well as shoulder programming and documentaries – under one roof in the UK. Currently, TNT Sports is available through Discovery+ for £30.99 ($38.60) monthly, although cheaper options are possible when purchasing it through different providers.
It also marks the exit of Eurosport as a platform from UK TV screens, having been a home of top-tier sport since 1989. The Eurosport 1 and 2 linear channels will simply no longer transmit in the UK. It is presently available through various TV providers and networks.
Discovery initially bought Eurosport in 2015, before merging with Warner Media in 2022.
In the other 50-plus countries across the continent in which it operates, meanwhile, the Eurosport brand and channels will remain unaltered. Therefore, live sports produced and distributed across Eurosport in Europe and TNT in the UK will be graphically different across those markets.
