The Professional Triathletes Organisation (PTO) and Warner Bros Discovery have announced an exclusive multi-year partnership to broadcast live and on-demand coverage of the new PTO Tour – a series of high profile, high prize fund, global events featuring many of the world’s best triathletes.
The agreement will see exclusive live coverage in 50 territories across Europe on Warner Bros Discovery’s linear channels and content streamed via discovery+, the Eurosport App and GCN+.
‘The landmark deal builds on Warner Bros Discovery’s far-reaching broadcast of the inaugural Collins Cup last year, the PTO’s US$1.5m flagship race that pits Europe versus Internationals versus USA. That event reached a live and on-demand TV audience in more than 175 territories – an unprecedented broadcast for the sport.’
“The global broadcast viewing figures for the Collins Cup in 2021 surpassed all expectations and demonstrated that there is an appetite for compelling live broadcasts of triathlon events that appeal not only to the fans of endurance sports, but also to the general sports enthusiast,” explained Tim Godfrey, Chief Marketing Officer at the PTO.
“That success, combined with the great numbers and engagement we saw around the Herbalife24 PTO Pro Am broadcast in May this year, helped shape our thinking on how to build this new partnership, which includes more standout events and an exciting combination of live, shoulder programming and editorial content across Warner Bros Discovery’s impressive broadcast, digital and social platforms. This partnership around the PTO Tour is primed to take the sport and its superhuman athletes to the next level.”
News of the partnership coincides with the reveal of the PTO’s new global marketing campaign, #TheRaceIsOn, which will aim to build awareness and excitement around the inaugural PTO Tour.
Heralding a ‘new era of triathlon’, the #TheRaceIsOn campaign was created in-house by PTO media and features a global 30’ TV spot, social video clips, digital advertising and imagery, led by a two-minute hero film.
Commenting of the partnership, Trojan Paillot, Vice President, Sports Rights Acquisitions and Syndication, Warner Bros Discovery Sports Europe, said “The new PTO Tour is a fantastic proposition, as we saw first-hand from the Collins Cup last year.
“We are hugely excited to provide the scale and expertise of Warner Bros Discovery Sports, using the reach of our broadcast network and engagement at scale of our digital platforms to support the growth of the PTO Tour.”
Scott Young, Senior Vice President, Content and Production, Warner Bros Discovery Sports Europe, added “As home of the Olympics in Europe, we know triathletes have some of the most compelling stories in sport.
“Our role as storytellers is to bring these stories to as many people as possible, offering the PTO and its athlete members a year-round platform to showcase their extraordinary talents.”
www.protriathletes.org
www.discovery.com
