International sports broadcaster Eurosport has upgraded its rights deal for the Tour de France through an agreement that will provide more live coverage of the cycling ‘Grand Tour’ event.
The deal with the European Broadcasting Union consortium of public-service broadcasters and Amaury Sport Organisation, organiser of the Tour, covers the next three editions of the race, spanning 2017 to 2019.
The agreement will allow fans the opportunity to watch every minute of the race live for the first time. Viewers in 54 markets across Europe will benefit from up to 25 hours more live Tour de France coverage for each of the next three years. The additional live action will come from 13 stages which have never previously been fully produced for television broadcast.
Eurosport has also increased its exclusive coverage of the event with the majority of European markets receiving the new live hours on a fully or partially exclusive basis.
Eurosport’s international feed will deliver 28 per cent more live coverage of this year’s Tour de France compared to 2016, with 105 hours scheduled for this year.
Eurosport chief executive Peter Hutton said: “We actively supported the change in the deal because we know that our viewers want to follow every climb, breakaway and sprint of the world’s most famous cycling race. The new arrangement is also great for professional cycling with teams, riders and sponsors getting more exposure, which we hope will help grow the sport and its audience.”
Eurosport first broadcast the Tour de France in 1991, with this year’s event running from July 1-23.