EBU and European Athletics Finalise Major Media Rights Extension Through to 2031

The European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and European Athletics have officially finalised a major media rights extension, ensuring comprehensive free-to-air coverage of the continent’s premier athletics events through to the end of 2031.

The multi-year contract renewal extends the existing broadcast cycle past its 2027 expiration, cementing an institutional partnership that dates back to 1981 and guiding the two organisations toward a historic 50-year milestone of continuous commercial collaboration.

Commenting on the partnership, president of European Athletics, Dobromir Karamarinov, said: “We are proud to extend our partnership with the EBU, a collaboration built on trust, quality and shared excellence.”

“As we look towards celebrating 50 years of partnership, this latest agreement confirms one of the longest-standing and most successful in international sport.

“This agreement sends a clear message: athletics remains at the heart of European sport,” he said.

Expressing his enthusiasm, CEO of European Athletics, Christian Milz, added: “The EBU has delivered world-class coverage of our events for decades, creating a model that serves athletes, broadcasters and fans.

“By the start of the next cycle, this partnership will have delivered 27 European Athletics Indoor Championships, 15 European Athletics Championships, and 32 SPAR European Cross Country Championships.

“That will be a total of 74 major events by the time the new contract begins. That level of consistency and longevity is rare in global sport,” Milz noted.

Extensive Multi-Tournament Inventory and Distribution Scale

The package encompasses the flagship European Athletics Championships in both 2028 and 2030, alongside the European Athletics Indoor Championships scheduled for 2029 and 2031.

Furthermore, the contract preserves free-to-air access for four editions of the SPAR European Cross Country Championships, as well as two iterations of the European Athletics Team Championships in 2029 and 2031.

Under the partnership of the extension, 30 prominent EBU Member organisations have already finalised their commitments to broadcast the slate of premium athletics events within their respective domestic territories.

The extensive reach of these public networks guarantees universal free-to-air access across Europe, insulating the sport from the rising financial fragmentation seen in subscription-driven pay-television markets. To capture alternative digital-first consumers, the EBU will leverage its direct-to-consumer streaming platform, Eurovision Sport, to provide global audiences with complementary live and on-demand digital feeds.

Host Broadcasting Operations and Production Alignment

Beyond media dissemination, the renewed alliance re-establishes the EBU’s central operational role in high-end television production. The union will continue to act as the primary host broadcaster for a vast majority of the scheduled European Athletics fixtures, relying directly on its specialized production partner, Actua Sport, to capture and distribute world-class host feeds to international media partners.

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