LONDON, PARIS: A blockbuster showing on Eurosport delivered its biggest week in seven years, attracting more television viewers in a single week than any time since 2015. At the same time, more and more people are streaming sport on discovery+ with Eurosport’s coverage on the platform seeing a 26% jump in unique video viewers over the past week (vs 2021).

A record week has been driven by the best ever opening week to Roland-Garros on Eurosport and its channels, which has covered the pinnacle of the clay court season for more than 30 years. Audiences on Eurosport 1 increased by 43% (vs 2021) and were up 24% on Eurosport 2. Local highlights include:

Local heroes led the way with a record start in Poland (+94%) as the country rallied behind Iga Świątek’s winning run and Hubert Hurkacz’s charge to the fourth round. 

Successful first weeks for Rafa Nadal and 19-year-old Carlos Alcaraz, including an epic second round 5 set marathon where he overcame fellow Spaniard Albert Ramos-Vinolas, helped drive a +180% rise in viewers in Spain. 

Strong audience growth in many of the 50 territories* Warner Bros. Discovery presents Roland-Garros, including Germany (+26%) and Italy (+46%). 

The third and final week of the Giro d’Italia also saw viewers flock to Eurosport as viewership including +10% vs 2021. This included the biggest final week ever in Italy in terms of audience share and a +9% rise in viewers (vs 2021), as well as growth in the Netherlands (+18%), Romania (+39%) and Spain (+3%). 

Four times as many people streamed the first week of Roland-Garros on discovery+ (vs 2021), contributing to the 26% overall increase in unique video viewers over the past week. Triple digit rises in Finland, Italy, Sweden and the U.K. – supported by the Giro and a range of local rights – helped boost discovery+ viewership through the week. 

New and local rights continue to perform strongly, such as Speedway, which is promoted by Discovery Sports Events, the company’s event promotion and management division. The third round of the Speedway Grand Prix held in Prague drew the biggest Speedway audience of the season in the U.K. (+76% vs this season’s average). 

All 886 matches from Roland-Garros are being presented live on discovery+ and the Eurosport App in 50 markets* across Europe. The finals take place on 4th and 5th June 2022.

*Excludes France.