How already announced in the previous year media giant Warner Bros. Discovery will take over the marketing and broadcasting of the UCI Mountain Bike World Cup in 2023. Their plan: to make mountain bike racing accessible to even more people. To achieve this, the group can draw on a wealth of resources and owns media platforms such as GNBN and GCN+ as well as TV channels such as Eurosport. According to the company, this TV channel alone can be received by up to 120 million households in Europe. Warner Bros. Discovery already has extensive experience in the marketing of sports events in road cycling - such as the Tour de France - and motorsport.
UCI Mountain Bike World Series 2023: Show formats and higher registration fees for riders
But it's not just the transmission channel that is changing. In order to make mountain biking even more media-effective, a number of adjustments have been made. Mountain bike racing is now to be shown in its entirety. To this end, Warner Bros. Discovery and the UCI have now also brought the enduro formats EWS and E-EWS as well as the MTB marathon discipline on board. The result is a joint UCI Mountain Bike World Cup Calendar 2023 with six MTB disciplines. Although enduro races (EDR) will not be broadcast live for the time being, there will be exciting summaries of the races in show formats, including interviews and scene news. The UCI World Cup Enduro races will now only take place on one day in 2023 - there will be smaller starting fields and the Masters class will be cancelled completely. Some of the World Cup venues will host three, five or even six disciplines, giving the MTB World Cup stops a more event-like character. The mega event par excellence will probably be Les Gets/Chatel/Morzine (FRA) in September - all mountain bike racing disciplines will be represented here. Downhill racers will also have to adjust to rule changes in the 2023 World Cup. There will be three races due to a newly introduced semi-final. Critical voices fear that the Downhill World Cup will now become more elitist and that many athletes will fall victim to the rule change. What's more, the registration fees for racing teams and individual riders have been increased immensely. "This means that many talented racers without a team behind them will fall by the wayside. Young talent will also have a harder time," fears former World Cup racer and presenter Jasper Jauch.
Mountain Bike World Cup 2023 live on Eurosport on free TV?
It has not yet been officially announced whether Warner Brothers will use its free TV channel Eurosport for the MTB World Cup broadcasts, or whether the MTB World Cups can only be watched via the paid services GCN+, Discovery+ or the paid Eurosportplayer. In the UCI press release published on 18 January, the live broadcast is rather vague:
With one of the world's biggest sports broadcasters behind the UCI Mountain Bike World Series, there will be more live coverage and more ways to watch the races than ever before. The UCI World Cup XCO, XCC and DHI events of the UCI Mountain Bike World Series will be available live and on-demand on discovery+*, the Eurosport app and globally on GCN+. UCI World Cup XCM, EDR and E-EDR will benefit from in-depth highlight shows at each round. Further viewing opportunities will be announced in the coming months. -
UCI press release from 18 January 2023
According to our information, everything points to both being offered: Live on free-to-air TV on Eurosport, and as a replay with additional content as a paid service with a Discovery+ or GCN+ subscription.
We will stay tuned and update this article as soon as the UCI or Warner Bros. Discovery reveal more details or exact transmission times.
Comments on the new UCI Mountain Bike World Series super format
Will the new concept from media giant Warner Bros. Discovery boost mountain bike racing? And are there only winners? Four voices on the new Super World Cup series for 2023.
My euphoria is limited. As an association, we are the last to receive information from the UCI. What I already know makes me sceptical. The UCI is increasing the fees immensely - many teams will no longer be able to afford to take part. The already elitist sport will become even more elitist. It's going to be tough for young riders. It won't help if the World Cup is televised.- Peter Schaupp, XCO national coach
We will be competing in all three disciplines. That will be a challenge that we are looking forward to. The EWS races will take place in Saalbach Hinterglemm and Saalfelden Leogang. I like Warner Brothers' plans. A TV broadcast would be another added value. I also believe that the number of races needs to be increased in the coming years in order to maintain the excitement. - Marco Pointner, CEO Saalfelden Leogang Event GmbH
I'm looking forward to the changes. The starting fields will be smaller. That may be more popular with the public, but it's tough for the athletes who lose out. The situation is similar for the Masters class. Nevertheless, enduro racing will benefit and get the platform it deserves. An exciting summary of the races will inspire many - there's a lot of potential here. - Ines Thoma, EWS racer, Team Canyon
Change is always exciting. The takeover of Warner Brothers is no exception. They have the power to push mountain biking into the mainstream media. Warner Brothers owns a number of TV stations not only in Europe, but also in the USA. I also hope that free TV coverage will give mountain biking more attention in the mainstream media. - Tarek Rasouli, Athlete and Event Manager
Laurin Lehner
Editor
