According to a press release from the meeting held in Montreux from 10 to 12 February, the Management Committee of the Union Cycliste Internationale has decided to enter into exclusive negotiations with Discovery Sports for the organization and promotion of the UCI Mountain Bike World Cup for eight seasons, from 2023 to 2030. Discovery is an American multinational conglomerate of mass media and television channels, including Eurosport.

Built on the success of freecaster TV

Broadcasting on Freecaster TV ushered in a new era for the Mountain Bike World Cup and the sport became increasingly popular. At the end of 2011, Freecaster was no longer able to meet the UCI's financial expectations and did not renew the contract for the broadcast. The broadcasting rights went to Red Bull TV from 2012, but the fans were not at all happy about this, partly because only the top 30 were shown in downhill.

In contrast, more interesting camera angles and greater and better quality coverage increased the appeal of mountain bike racing immensely, even in cross country. In recent years, spectator numbers there have even exceeded those of the Downhill World Cup.

Red Bull TV is therefore doing its farewell lap this year, and all races of the Mercedes-Benz UCI World Cup 2022 will be shown on Red Bull TV and on the channels of the World Cup organizers. The Cycling World Federation would like to thank Red Bull Media House for taking the sport so far over the years.

The fact that the production and promotion is now going to the market leader is not a bad sign. On the contrary - it underlines the appeal of the Mountain Bike World Cup and represents a great opportunity to present the sport to an even wider audience. ride.ch will provide information on the exact channels on which the World Cup races can be seen from 2023 at a later date.