Discovery Sports Events launched to represent Discovery’s global promoter arm as growth continues
Discovery has unveiled Discovery Sports Events as the new corporate brand to represent its global promotion and events management arm, previously known as Eurosport Events.
The division is part of Discovery Sports – the dedicated group that operates the company’s portfolio of sports brands, channels and platforms – with the move to Discovery Sports Events reflecting the growth of the company’s promoter and events division. Over the next three years alone, the global properties it oversees will more than double to 55 events per year across five continents, including the addition of new assets such as the UCI Track Champions League, FIM Speedway GP and FIA Electric GT.
Expanding far beyond Eurosport Events’ heritage of traditional motorsport events, Discovery Sports Events will be focused on three core areas: electric car racing, motorbike racing and track cycling.
New agreements struck over the past 18 months with international federations will see Discovery Sports Events gear-up its portfolio immediately. It acts as the global promotor and commercial rights-holder for six global championships under long-term global promotor relationships with the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile (FIA), Fédération Internationale de Motocyclisme (FIM) and Union Cycliste Internationale (UCI).
Andrew Georgiou, president of sports, Discovery, said: “We recently unveiled the Discovery Sports corporate identity to showcase the scale of Discovery’s portfolio of sports brands, channels and platforms which taken together is unrivalled for its ability to engage audiences however the viewer chooses to watch. Discovery Sports Events combines years of global promotion experience with the capabilities of a global media company. This makes it truly unique in the marketplace with the ability to empower federations to grow their sports by utilising our expertise across the full value chain of an event – production, broadcast and distribution across all platforms.
“As we look ahead, Discovery Sports Events is well placed to help build sports properties for the long-term, deliver truly innovative on-event and on-screen experiences and integrate sustainability into every part of the process. With series already underway and new ones launching soon, I can’t wait to see what the team delivers over the coming year and beyond.”
Francois Ribeiro, head of Discovery Sports Events, said: “After 15 years under the Eurosport Events umbrella, we have reached a new phase of growth. We are seeing a rapid expansion in the volume and profile of the six world level championships we will promote by 2023, including the addition of three global properties in the UCI Track Champions League, FIM Speedway GP and FIA Electric GT.
“Our new Discovery Sports Events identity represents the full scale and opportunity, from across the Discovery business, that we offer partners as we work together to grow events, series and entire sports. It’s a privilege to lead our amazing team and work hand-in-hand with the most future-thinking international federations, introducing innovative formats that will serve fans in new and exciting ways for years to come.”
Discovery Sports Events is fully integrated with the capabilities of the wider Discovery group, benefiting from in-house expertise across advertising sales and marketing solutions; broadcast and digital; content production; media and rights distribution; as well as marketing and communications. Taken together, it provides tailored solutions to help event-owners engage more widely and deeply with audiences, whether on-event or through Discovery’s free-to-air, pay-tv, streaming or online platforms and those of its partners.
In 2021, Discovery Sports Events will deliver 28 events that feature more than 3,000 hours of international multi-platform coverage that is expected to reach more than 800 million consumers. It is the global promoter of the FIA World Touring Car Cup, FIM Endurance World Championship and FIA European Rally Championship (which will be handed over to World Rally Championship at the end of the season) and Pure ETCR, the world’s first all-electric touring car championship that launched earlier this year and will upgrade to the FIA eTouring Car World Cup for 2022. Later this year, and together with the UCI, Discovery Sports Events will launch the UCI Track Champions League.