The Infront agency has agreed a five-year extension to its contract with the Ski Association of Japan for the international media rights to all International Ski Federation (FIS) World Cup events held in the country.
The new agreement, which excludes Japan, will run from the 2021-22 season through to the end of the 2025-26 campaign. The renewed agreement includes Alpine, cross-country, ski jumping, Nordic Combined, freestyle, freeskiing and snowboard World Cup events.
Japan will host five women’s Ski Jumping World Cup events this season, in Sapporo from January 11-12 and Zao from January 17-19. It will stage two men’s Ski Jumping World Cup events in Sapporo from February 1-2.
Freestyle World Cup competitions will be held in Tazawako from February 22-23, while a men’s Alpine Skiing World Cup event will take place on the same dates at the Niigata Yuzawa Naeba Ski Resort.
Infront holds international rights to almost all World Cup events through individual deals with each national ski federation as each sells rights to the events held in their home nation.
The agency does not hold rights to World Cup events held in Switzerland as those are held by the European Broadcasting Union, the umbrella body of public-service broadcasters. Infront has yet to renew its deals with the national associations in Italy and Norway for the new cycle (2021-22 to 2025-26) but negotiations are continuing.