BT Warner Bros. Discovery Sports Deal Approved
BT Sport and Eurosport UK have received approval from the Competitions and Markets Authority (CMA) for their merger to go ahead.
This means that BT and Warner Brothers Discovery will see a 50/50 split between both companies, but both BT Sport and Eurosport UK will initially retain their existing brands for streaming and subscriptions packages.
However it is expected that the joint venture will bring all their channels together on one streaming platform.
By bringing together the sports content offering of both BT Sport and Eurosport UK, the joint venture will have one of the most extensive portfolios of premium sports rights including UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, the Premier League, Premiership Rugby, UFC, the Olympic Games, tennis Grand Slams featuring the Australian Open and Roland-Garros, cycling Grand Tours including the Tour de France and Giro d’Italia and the winter sports World Cup season.
Those customers who access BT Sport through BT directly, and the majority of BT TV customers, are set to receive discovery+, the non-fiction entertainment streaming service which is home to Eurosport’s live and on-demand streaming offer in the UK & Ireland, as part of existing subscriptions.
Marc Allera, future Chairman of the joint venture and CEO of BT’s Consumer division said:
“It’s great news that the CMA has approved the new joint venture that we are forming with Warner Bros. Discovery, combining the very best of BT Sport and Eurosport UK, to create an exciting new offer for live sport programming in the UK. Today is a huge milestone, as we now look forward to day one of the new business, which we hope to be in the coming weeks.”
Andrew Georgious, future board member of the joint venture and President and Managing Director of Warner Bros. Discovery Sports Europe said: “Combining the capabilities, portfolios and scale of BT Sport and Eurosport UK will be a big win for fans in the UK and Ireland, offering a new destination that will feature all the sport they love in one place. We now look forward to closing the transaction and having the opportunity to further engage all stakeholders in the process of forming and developing the joint venture.”