The International Olympic Committee (IOC) has awarded the broadcast rights in Sub-Saharan Africa* to Infront Sports & Media AG for the XXII Olympic Winter Games in 2014 in Sochi, Russia, the Games of the XXXI Olympiad in 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil and the 2nd Summer Youth Olympic Games in 2014 in Nanjing, China.
Infront has acquired exclusive broadcast rights on free to air television and non-exclusive internet and mobile broadcast rights.
IOC President Thomas Bach said: “This agreement reflects the global appeal of the Olympic Games, and our aim is to reach audiences in all regions across the globe with the best broadcast offering. We want to not only generate viewership for sports where African athletes already perform successfully, but also boost appeal for Olympic sports gaining popularity on the continent.”
IOC member Richard Carrión, who led the negotiations, said: “Infront has acquired the rights and will now work to sublicense those rights to broadcasters in the region to ensure excellent coverage of the Olympic Games for sports fans. The partnership with Infront allows us to take advantage of its network across the continent, supported further by a tailor-made editorial plan for African broadcasters and their viewers. ”
Stephan Herth, Executive Director Summer Sports of Infront Sports & Media, said: “We would like to thank the IOC for trusting in our broadcast distribution experience and ability to extend the spirit and scope of Olympic programming to an even broader audience. Our ambition is to encourage the growth of sport in Africa with a dedicated broadcast product and continue to advocate the Olympics as a worldwide event. We are looking forward to delivering the Winter Olympics to television screens in so many countries in Africa for the first time in 2014.”
* Includes:
1. Angola
2. Benin
3. Botswana
4. Burkina Faso
5. Burundi
6. Cameroon
7. Cape Verde
8. Central Africa Republic
9. Chad
10. Comoros
11. Congo, Democratic Republic of
12. Congo, Republic of
13. Côte d’Ivoire
14. Equatorial Guinea
15. Eritrea
16. Ethiopia
17. Gabon
18. Gambia
19. Ghana 20. Guinea
21. Guinea-Bissau 22. Kenya 23. Lesotho 24. Liberia 25. Madagascar 26. Malawi 27. Mali 28. Mauritius 29. Mozambique 30. Namibia
31. Niger 32. Nigeria 33. Rwanda 34. São Tomé and Príncipe 35. Senegal 36. Seychelles 37. Sierra Leone 38. Swaziland 39. Tanzania 40. Togo
41. Uganda 42. Zambia 43. Zimbabwe
For more information, please contact
The IOC Media Relations Team: Tel: +41 21 621 6000 e-mail: pressoffice@olympic.org, or visit our web site at www.olympic.org.
