The 2024 edition of sailing’s prestigious America’s Cup, to take place in Barcelona, Spain, will be shown in New Zealand by a combination of media and entertainment giant Warner Bros. Discovery (WBD), and media brand Stuff.
A three-way partnership between those companies and Team New Zealand was unveiled earlier today, covering all America’s Cup action this year - the preliminary regatta, the challenger Louis Vuitton Cup competition, the Youth America’s Cup, the Women’s America’s Cup, and finally the America’s Cup itself, featuring Team New Zealand. That latter race will take place between October 12 and 27.
Each of these events will be live and free-to-air across stuff.co.nz, as well as the WBD-owned Three and ThreeNow channels in New Zealand. In addition to live coverage, each race will receive a full replay in the morning New Zealand time (due to time difference issues), and be made available on-demand.
Coverage begins with the Barcelona Regatta event on August 22 and finishes with the conclusion of the main America’s Cup.
The 2021 America’s Cup took place in New Zealand, off the coast of Auckland, and was covered domestically by public-service broadcaster TVNZ.
Grant Daltons, Team New Zealand chief executive, has said: “When we started talking with Stuff and WBD, it was clear they are approaching the new media landscape in a similar bold way by challenging conventions and viewing event coverage from a 24-hour multi-platform perspective, that caters for all New Zealanders in whatever way they consume live sports, replays, and news stories from on the ground in Barcelona.
“I don’t think it could be covered more extensively or be more accessible in a media partnership if we tried.”
Nadia Tolich, Stuff Digital’s managing director, has also commented on the tie-up: “Our coverage will also include insights and analysis from experts on the ground, fantastic opportunities for audience engagement in our live blogs and all the color from Barcelona, from the personalities pier-side to the people in the plazas.”
In terms of other media rights deals for this year’s America’s Cup, last September the European Broadcasting Union, the alliance of public-service broadcasters, snapped up rights in 39 European markets.
