Tennis gets major boost in UK with blockbuster new Sky Sports deal
Tennis will have a new home on British and Irish television as media giant Sky Sports announces a new blockbuster deal with the ATP and WTA.
Sky Sports already has the rights to the US Open, but as a result of the new deal it will broadcast live tennis 48 weeks a year.
We cover 80 tournaments a year, over 4,000 tournaments, and the broadcaster pays £10 million in annual rights fees.
These tournaments include the ATP 1000 Masters, all WTA 1000 events, plus the 500 and 250. The ATP Finals and WTA Finals are also included, but domestic tournaments are not included as tournaments such as Queen’s are part of a separate deal that the BBC currently has with LTA.
In addition, a new dedicated channel of tennis coverage will be launched, hosted by presenter Gigi Salmon and experts Tim Henman and Laura Robson.
“Now is a great time to watch the ATP Tour and WTA Tour on Sky Sports in our market as tennis enters a new era and fresh and exciting talent strives for the top of the sport.” said Sky UK and Ireland. CEO Stephen van Rooyen said:
“We are committed to bringing the two tours together to bring you world-class coverage of 80 events over 48 weeks a year, spotlighting both male and female stars. We are creating a brand new home for tennis fans.”
Sky Sports has a long history in tennis. The company owned the UK rights for 25 years until he switched to Amazon Prime in 2018.
In this regard, Amazon’s ad-free coverage will also be missed, but many viewers probably feel that tennis is coming back.
‘The start of an amazing new chapter for tennis’ 🤝🎾pic.twitter.com/NQ2hlFLEtb
– Sky Sports Tennis (@SkySportsTennis) 24. November 2023
ATP Media CEO Mark Webster said: “We are very pleased with his commitment to Sky for both men’s and women’s tennis.”
“ATP Media is proud to produce and distribute the vast amount of world-class content generated on the ATP Tour, and the three Sky companies are committed to delivering this content to millions of tennis fans. has proven to be the perfect partner for
“We share many of the same values and strive for innovation and excellence, and we hope this is just the beginning of a great new chapter for tennis in these Sky markets. ”
‘Exciting opportunity’ for tennis
Tim Henman has become a respected voice in tennis in recent years, thanks to his work as an analyst with Amazon and Eurosport.
He will play a key role in the new contract, bringing tennis to an exciting era in the sport with young players such as Carlos Alcaraz, Jannik Sinner, Coco Kauf, Iga Swiatek and Emma Raducanu. I believe it will reach a wider audience. their legacy.
“There’s a lot of opportunity to not only bring the game to a younger audience, but also introduce different technologies and deep dive into why the top players are so good,” Henman said.
“This is what Sky Sports does so well across a range of sports, and we’re bringing that expertise back to tennis to make the game more accessible and get more young people into the sport to keep them busy. It’s exciting to encourage people to get started.”
Meanwhile, WTA Ventures CEO Marina Storti added: “This partnership is great news for tennis fans. Tennis fans can look forward to even more exciting action on the Hologic WTA Tour in 2024 and beyond, making the sport even stronger for its value.”
“Sky Sports is known for their commitment to world-class sport and we are excited to build a fantastic new platform to showcase outstanding WTA and ATP athletes in one place. I know.” The future of women’s sports is bright and will continue to be. We expect even greater growth in the future. ”
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