LONDON – February 26, 2020 – With all eyes on Sydney as SailGP returns this week, the global championship today announced comprehensive broadcast coverage for the start of Season 2, which will feature the most immersive, multi-platform experience the sport has ever seen. Viewers in 146 territories will have the ability to watch the world’s fastest sail racing through the international broadcast feed with innovative and data-driven enhancements from last year.
In an effort to present the thrilling action of Season 2 to an expanded global audience, SailGP has added new broadcast partners in key territories, including:
SKY Sports (UK and Ireland): The new home of SailGP in the United Kingdom and Ireland, SKY Sports will broadcast live event coverage in addition to regular highlights programming throughout the season. TBS BS (Japan): The broadcaster will showcase SailGP to a new audience in Japan with a highlights program following each event to complement live coverage on existing partner DAZN. TV 2 (Denmark): With the first Copenhagen event taking place in September and a new team from Denmark, TV 2 Sport will feature the global championship for the next two seasons, including both live coverage and highlights. In addition, the second day of the Copenhagen 2020 event will be broadcast live on the main TV 2 network.Claro Sports (Central and Latin America): Claro Sports has been added as the exclusive broadcast partner in Central and Latin America, with the Olympic broadcast rights holder providing significant live and delayed coverage across its linear sports channels. Sport24: Broadcaster will provide live and delayed coverage throughout the season on its leading in-flight and cruise line systems.
Additionally, CBS has extended its deal with SailGP following a successful first season that will see continued coverage in the United States and Canada on CBS Sports Network, with two-hour broadcasts of the San Francisco and New York events on the main network.
Canal+ Sport (France and other French-speaking territories) and FOX Sports (Australia) will continue providing live and delayed coverage, while racing fans in Sub-Saharan Africa, the Caribbean and Southeast Asia regions are able to follow live racing on SuperSport, FLOW Sports and FOX Sports. Live coverage of SailGP continues to be available with partners in New Zealand (Sky Sport), Turkey (BeIN Sport) and Israel (Sport1 / Sport2).
SailGP media rights distribution for 2020 was handled by Talisman Sport & Media.
SailGP CMO Tim Godfrey said: “The ability to deliver an innovative and insightful viewing experience through sustainable practices is critical for us as an organization. The success of our broadcast partnerships relies upon the distribution of a premium product that appeals to a wide range of people – whether they’re seasoned veterans or new to the sport – and the digital enhancements we’ve implemented for Season 2 will strengthen our storytelling ability.”
SailGP boosts broadcast production
To deliver an industry-leading broadcast production, the global championship has built upon its award-winning strategy from last year and will introduce the SailGP Analysis Hub – a bespoke augmented reality graphic offering that will deliver breakdowns of select race sequences. Hosted by former America’s Cup racer Matt Cornwell from a London studio, this innovative broadcast feature will give fans a closer, more detailed look at the crucial moments that determine the results of a race.
This segment is available to viewers receiving the English-language feed and will be woven into SailGP’s race day content schedule, with Cornwell providing expert analysis following each fleet race that will supplement on-site commentary from hosts Ed Leigh and Lisa Darmanin.
All international broadcast feeds during Season 2 will feature a new graphics package that relies on extensive data, made possible through collaboration with Oracle that showcases analytics in real-time so viewers can have a deeper understanding of race action.
Whisper Films will work alongside SailGP to create the world feed. Using patented LiveLineFx technology, fans will enjoy the most engaging global broadcast experience sailing has ever seen. The personality-driven content will include live event racing and highlights packages, in-venue live feeds, information packages and pre-produced vignettes, extensive athlete-focused features, and enhanced pre- and post-race analysis.
SailGP APP gets additional features
The global championship has revamped the award-winning SailGP APP alongside partner Apadmi to provide a more comprehensive look into each event, implementing additional data and viewing options so users can watch the world’s fastest sail racing when and how they want. As the global championship prepares for its second campaign, the app will now have a multi-season menu that allows users to jump to specific races – from either Season 1 or 2 – and watch video feed from the events they select.
The SailGP APP gives fans full control and the ability to customize their experience based on a variety of settings, including their respective team fandom or level of sailing expertise, and allows them to swipe between camera angles during the fleet races for their preferred view of the action. New for 2020 is the option to select alternate commentary from broadcasters Jody Shiels and Marc Ablett, which will be tailored toward a younger audience.
The SailGP APP is available in the App Store and Google Play.
The global championship’s second season kicks off February 28-29, with tickets available at SailGP.com/Sydney.
