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The process of consolidation in the media sector, one of sport’s main paymasters, has continued with news that Warner Bros. Discovery and BT Group have closed a deal to form a new sports joint venture.
The move means that assets of BT Sport and Eurosport UK have been combined to produce a line-up for viewers in the United Kingdom and Ireland that includes live coverage of events such as the Olympic Games, the Premier League, the UEFA Champions League, Premiership rugby, cycling, winter sports and many others.
The move is said to be the precursor towards the launch of a new sports brand.
However, BT Sport and Eurosport UK are to retain their separate product propositions for “a period of time.”
Seven years ago, Discovery Communications agreed a deal with the International Olympic Committee (IOC) for the broadcast of the Olympics across most of Europe.
The €1.3 billion (£1.1 billion/$1.3 billion) deal covers two Olympic cycles, starting in 2018 and culminating with Paris 2024.
Last year, Discovery was combined with WarnerMedia, the content unit of the United States-based telecoms company AT&T.
Marc Allera, chief executive of BT’s consumer division and chairman of the new joint venture, described the move as “an exciting new chapter for BT Sport.”
Andrew Georgiou, President and managing director of Warner Bros. Discovery Sports Europe and a Board member of the new joint venture, spoke of building a “new sports destination for fans in the UK and Ireland” and “an exciting new proposition for consumers.”
The Board of Directors of the new joint venture is equally represented between appointees of British Telecommunications plc and Warner Bros. Discovery.
The chair is to be nominated by each shareholder on “a rotating basis.”
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David Owen worked for 20 years for the Financial Times in the United States, Canada, France and the UK. He ended his FT career as sports editor after the 2006 World Cup and is now freelancing, including covering the 2008 Beijing Olympics, the 2010 World Cup and London 2012.
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For nearly 15 years now, insidethegames.biz has been at the forefront of reporting fearlessly on what happens in the Olympic Movement. As the first website not to be placed behind a paywall, we have made news about the International Olympic Committee, the Olympic and Paralympic Games, the Commonwealth Games and other major events more accessible than ever to everybody.
insidethegames.biz has established a global reputation for the excellence of its reporting and breadth of its coverage. For many of our readers from more than 200 countries and territories around the world the website is a vital part of their daily lives. The ping of our free daily email alert, sent every morning at 6.30am UK time 365 days a year, landing in their inbox, is as a familiar part of their day as their first cup of coffee.
Even during the worst times of the COVID-19 pandemic, insidethegames.biz maintained its high standard of reporting on all the news from around the globe on a daily basis. We were the first publication in the world to signal the threat that the Olympic Movement faced from the coronavirus and have provided unparalleled coverage of the pandemic since.
As the world begins to emerge from the COVID crisis, insidethegames.biz would like to invite you to help us on our journey by funding our independent journalism. Your vital support would mean we can continue to report so comprehensively on the Olympic Movement and the events that shape it. It would mean we can keep our website open for everyone. Last year, nearly 25 million people read insidethegames.biz, making us by far the biggest source of independent news on what is happening in world sport.
Every contribution, however big or small, will help maintain and improve our worldwide coverage in the year ahead. Our small and dedicated team were extremely busy last year covering the re-arranged Olympic and Paralympic Games in Tokyo, an unprecedented logistical challenge that stretched our tight resources to the limit.
The remainder of 2022 is not going to be any less busy, or less challenging. We had the Winter Olympic and Paralympic Games in Beijing, where we sent a team of four reporters, and coming up are the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, the Summer World University and Asian Games in China, the World Games in Alabama and multiple World Championships. Plus, of course, there is the FIFA World Cup in Qatar.
Unlike many others, insidethegames.biz is available for everyone to read, regardless of what they can afford to pay. We do this because we believe that sport belongs to everybody, and everybody should be able to read information regardless of their financial situation. While others try to benefit financially from information, we are committed to sharing it with as many people as possible. The greater the number of people that can keep up to date with global events, and understand their impact, the more sport will be forced to be transparent.
Support insidethegames.biz for as little as £10 – it only takes a minute. If you can, please consider supporting us with a regular amount each month. Thank you.
Read more 
