Eurovision Sport and EBU Members are planning an exciting programme of sports coverage for 2024, with some of sport’s most outstanding events set to be broadcast free-to-air to audiences across Europe and beyond.

These include the Paris 2024 Olympic Games (26 July to 11 August), which EBU Members will be broadcasting via their own, individual deals with Warner Bros. Discovery for the last time, before a new, directly-negotiated, EBU-wide deal kicks in for the 2026-2032 cycle, beginning with the XXV Olympic Winter Games Milano Cortina 2026.

Meanwhile, EBU Members in selected territories will be televising UEFA EURO 2024, football’s European Championships hosted by Germany (14 June to 14 July), through contracts negotiated centrally by Eurovision Sport, while other Members will show the continent’s quadrennial nations championship as a result of deals agreed individually with UEFA.

Other highlights of the year ahead include:

Winter Sports

As always, EBU Members will be showing a full line-up of winter sports events, including biathlon’s BMW IBU World Championships in Nove Mesto Na Morave, Czechia on 7-18 February, quickly followed by the IBU Youth Junior World Championships in Otepaa, Estonia on 23 February to 2 March.

The FIS Ski Flying World Championships, at which the world’s best ski-jumpers will display spectacular jumps of up to 250 metres, will take place at Kulm/Bad Mitterndorf, Austria on 25-28 January, while Alpine skiing’s FIS World Cup season will culminate with the Finals in Saalbach, Austria on 16-24 March.

Cycling

The Tour de France headlines the 2024 road cycling season, with the men’s race taking place on 29 June to 21 July and the women’s version, the Tour de France Femmes, scheduled for 12-18 August. The last of the season’s Grand Tours, the Vuelta a Espana, will be shown free-to-air on 17 August to 8 September, with the women’s version, the Vuelta Femenina taking place earlier in the season on 29 April to 7 May.

These iconic stage races will be accompanied by a full programme of men’s and women’s one-day classics. 

EBU Members will also broadcast, among others, the annual UEC Road European Championships in Limburg-Flanders, Belgium on 11-15 September, followed by the UCI Road World Championships, which this year is set to take place in Zurich in Switzerland, one of the hotbeds of European road cycling, on 21-29 September.

Athletics

In a year in which elite athletes will have their sights firmly set on the Paris 2024 Olympics, there are two major opportunities for free-to-air TV viewers to find out who’s in form ahead of the Games: the World Athletics Indoor Championships in Glasgow, Scotland on 1-3 March; and the European Athletics Championships in Rome, Italy on 7-12 June.

Aquatics

Similarly, aquatics fans in Europe will have a chance to assess the prospects of their favourites at the World Aquatics Championships in Doha, Qatar on 2-18 February, and the European Aquatics Championships, to be hosted by Belgrade in Serbia on 10-23 June.

Meanwhile, a line-up of some of the heroes and heroines of Paris 2024 is set to be on show at the World Aquatics Championships (25m) in Budapest, Hungary on 10-15 December.

Gymnastics

The FIG Aerobic World Championships will take place in Pesaro, Italy on 27-29 September. Earlier in the year, stars of European gymnastics will feature at the Artistic Gymnastics European Gymnastics in Rimini, Italy, with the men’s event taking place on 24-28 April and the women’s on 2-5 May. These are followed by the Rhythmic Gymnastics European Championships in Hungary, Budapest on 22-26 May.

Sailing

In September last year, the EBU announced that it had acquired the media rights to cover the 37th edition of the America’s Cup, sailing’s blue-riband event, in 39 territories. The last of three preliminary events will take place in August, ahead of the America’s Cup match, which is scheduled for 12-20 October in Barcelona, Spain.

The rights acquired also cover the Challenger Selection Series and the Youth and Puig Women’s America’s Cup on 26 September to 16 October.

America's Cup, official organizer of the event, will offer EBU Members’ audiences innovative digital enhancements to the coverage, helping achieve the enduring objective of making sailing accessible to as many fans as possible.

Summer Sports

Other top summer sports events this year that are sure to feature stars of the Paris 2024 Olympics include World Rowing’s combined European Championships and Olympic Qualifier in Szeged, Hungary on 25-28 April, with a second Olympic Qualification event scheduled for 19-21 May in Luzern. Switzerland.

Rugby Europe will stage two Rugby Sevens tournaments in Makarska, Croatia on 7-9 June and in Hamburg, Germany on 28-30 June, while a series of FIBA 3x3 Basketball Olympic Games Qualifying tournaments will take place ahead of the Paris 2024 Games in August.

In canoeing, there are World Championship for Canoe Sprint Non-Olympic events in Samarkand, Uzbekistan on 23-25 August.

Social media

This is just a taste of what the year has to offer on free-to-air TV for European sports fans. To stay informed, keep an eye on the EBU’s social media outlets: 

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Glen Killane, Executive Director of Eurovision Sport, said: “The EBU and our Members are committed to providing audiences with the very best in sports coverage where everyone is invited. I think the exciting line-up of upcoming events this year will see audiences watch in record numbers.

“Because we have no barriers to entry we also provide athletes and sports federations with a potential audience of almost 1 billion people, meaning their sports are benefiting from the best shop window in the world. We are proud to represent our Members and proud that we continue to work on behalf of, and for the benefit of, the European public.”