Warner Bros. Discovery & BT Sport Close Joint Venture Transaction
The transaction for Warner Bros Discovery and BT Sport’s joint UK and Ireland sports venture has closed successfully.
The conglomerates announced they would combine a few months ago when a deal for Dazn to acquire BT Sports fell through, and BT Sport and its subsidiary Eurosport UK’s assets have now been transferred into the combined 50/50 JV.
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As work begins to develop the new sports offering for the UK & Ireland, BT Sport and Eurosport UK will be separate for a period of time before a new sports brand is launched, combining David Zaslav’s Warner Bros. Discovery and BT.
The new powerhouse will bring together the might of two sports juggernauts, with the likes of the Olympic Games, the Premier League, UEFA Champions League, UEFA Europa League, the Premier League, Premiership Rugby, MotoGP, UFC, Boxing and WWE on offer.
BT Consumer Division CEO Marc Allera will chair the as-yet-unnamed JV.
“As we enter our ninth season, today is day one of an exciting new chapter for BT Sport,” he said. “I am extremely proud of the teams and the established brand and broadcaster that BT Sport has become, and I look forward to working with Warner Bros. Discovery to create an exciting new sport TV offering for the UK.”
Andrew Georgiou, Warner Bros. Discovery Sports Europe President and MD, said today “marks the start of our journey to build a new sports destination for fans in the U.K and Ireland.”
Georgiou will sit on the board chaired by Allera.
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