NBCSN Is Shutting Down at the End of 2021. What Does This Mean for the Tour de France?
NBCUniversal plans to shut down NBC Sports Network, which is the home of the Tour de France, by the end of the year, according to Sports Business Daily.
High-profile sports, such as NHL and NASCAR will move to USA Network.
NBCSN will stay around through the end of the Olympics, which—as of now—are still expected to happen this year.
On January 22, NBCUniversal, which is owned by Comcast, announced that NBC Sports Network (NBCSN) will be shutting down by the end of 2021, leaving cycling fans in the U.S. wondering how they’ll watch live coverage of the Tour de France after this year.
As more people “cut the cord” on their cable packages, it’s become popular to watch live events on services such as Hulu, YouTube TV, and Peacock, which is the streaming service owned by NBCUniversal. Shutting down NBCSN appears to be part of NBC’s bigger strategy to grow Peacock, which launched on July 15, 2020.
Join Bicycling All Access today for more cycling news.
“We’re absolutely committed more than ever to live sports as a company, and having such a huge platform like USA Network airing some of our key sports content is great for our partners, distributors, viewers and advertisers alike,” NBC Sports Group Chairman Pete Bevacqua said to the Wall Street Journal.
According to Sports Business Daily, which first broke the news, certain sporting events—such as NHL, NASCAR, and English Premier League soccer—will move to the USA Network, which is also owned by NBC. Smaller events, such as car shows, dog shows, and some motorsports, will have to find new TV outlets.
The Tour de France coverage may be headed to Peacock next year, a source tells WSJ reporter Joe Flint.
In 2001, the Outdoor Life Network bought the rights to the Tour de France. Five years later, Comcast renamed the Outdoor Life Network to Versus, and then relaunched it as NBCSN in 2012.
NBCSN will stay around through the end of the 2021 Tokyo Olympics, which as of now, are still expected to happen this year.
Bicycling will update this story as more information becomes available.
You Might Also Like
