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| (Image Source: DAZN) |
From being the exclusive home of women's football, European football, boxing, mixed martial arts and NFL among others, DAZN is building to become an ultimate global sports entertainment platform where sports enthusiasts across the globe can enjoy, indulge and interact and be informed on the latest throughout the world of sports. This intriguingly interesting commitment is strongly evidenced by its sleuth of partnerships with some of the world's premier sports brands, giving fans the chance and opportunity to enjoy the best of what they offer. Recently, the most satisfying thing about these partnerships is that they can now catch all of the action without a subscription fee via DAZN's own Free Zone.
DAZN has been working with the eSports World Cup Foundation, X Games, UIM E1 World Championship and IRONMAN to produce and deliver content that optimizes sports viewing experience and broadcasting them to a wider global audience through its sector-leading app-based technology in the fulfillment ambition of the global platform and its partners to scale global access and reach and engage a bigger audience. These events will be available live and on-demand on DAZN's ever-expanding free tier, which also includes women's football action and a wide selection of FAST (free ad-supported television) sports channels, and are offered in multiple languages, ensuring worry-free accessibility to all the action anytime and anywhere. DAZN has developed a strong reputation for delivering high-quality events and broadcasts in different parts of the globe including top-quality boxing and combat events like Fury versus Usyk and Joshua versus Ngannou and the UEFA Women's Champions League.
eSports World Cup
Building on DAZN's successful collaboration with Riyadh Season to develop an innovative eSports experience, the inaugural eSports World Cup (EWC) will take place in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia starting July 3, 2024 featuring top professional gaming athletes and clubs around the world across multiple eSports titles. The EWC will transform Riyadh into the epicentre of eSports fandom and gaming culture. Slated to be held in Boulevard City, fans can watch their favourite athletes and clubs compete across 22 game championships for a share of more than US$60M in life-changing prize money — the largest prize pool in eSports history. Across eight weeks, the EWC will also feature a variety of various festival activities that include numerous gaming activations, community tournaments, pop culture celebrations, international experiences, and more. As the world’s leading sports entertainment platform, DAZN is committed to becoming the global broadcaster and strategic partner of the EWC, with the innovative format and significant prize pool, helping to establish the EWC as the preeminent fixture on the eSports calendar. DAZN Group CEO Shay Segev said, “DAZN’s technology, distribution, production and marketing capabilities sets us apart. We are the perfect long-term partners for the eSports World Cup Foundation, and we will be working closely together to further develop how we deliver this innovative event in ways that excite, engage and create new levels of interaction for fans and new audiences. The eSports World Cup is another fantastic and forward-looking property that DAZN will bring to the world, helping take it to the next level in terms of growth as well as helping attract an even more younger and diverse demographic to the platform.” eSports World Cup Foundation CEO Ralf Reichert said, “We’re excited to team up with DAZN and build traditional sports coverage for the eSports World Cup. As we work to establish eSports as a vital driver of global culture, partnerships with market leaders like DAZN are essential long-term steps to stimulate sustained interest and engage global fan communities. I’m looking forward to DAZN’s world-class coverage of EWC and commitment as we celebrate competitive excellence and gaming culture together.”
X Games
The X Games have become the premier action sports competition, drawing over 50,000 visitors to the 2023 summer event alone. X Games recently announced the introduction of X Games League, an innovative new take on the competitive structure and events within action sport. The X Games Summer League features skateboarding, BMX, and motocross while the Winter League includes freestyle skiing and snowboarding. Teams, backed by investors, will consist of athletes competing in individual disciplines to earn points. A vast library of year-round and innovative X Games content throughout the season including short-form and long content is available in front of DAZN's paywall as part of its free on-demand content offerings fans including women's sports with female athletes at the center of their coverage. Over the past year, X Games has added five new women’s disciplines: BMX Park, Skateboard Vert Best Trick, Skateboard Street Best Trick, and Ski and Snowboard Knuckle Huck. The recently-concluded X Games Ventura 2024 presented by SONIC saw the debut of Women’s BMX Park which featured Olympians like Hannah Roberts and Nikkita Ducaroz. DAZN Group CEO Shay Segev said, “This global partnership with X Games represents another premium addition to our free content proposition. Much like the DAZN platform, X Games is competition rooted in innovation and passion and we are pleased to be playing a significant role in increasing its global popularity. Fans of these events will be able to access the best action at no cost on DAZN’s platform and we look forward to welcoming them to a new home for action sport.” X Games President and COO Scott Guglielmino said, “We’re delighted to partner with DAZN to provide X Games fans with more access to our brand and the world class athletes that drive it. This is an important next step as we build toward the launch of our X Games Leagues in 2026. X Games Winter and Summer Leagues will provide fans with year-round opportunities to follow and engage with the world’s premier action sports athletes from host cities around the world.”
UIM E1 World Championship
Under a multi-territory agreement which runs throughout the current season, DAZN will broadcast the pioneering Championship to audiences in exciting sports markets such as Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Canada, Japan and Southeast Asia among other territories as part of its industry-leading free tier. Interest in E1, the world’s first all-electric raceboat championship, has been building exponentially since its launch in February, driven by the drama of high-octane racing on the waters of iconic cities across the world. The hype behind the racing series is set to peak at E1’s marquee Monaco event that will take place on July 28, 2024, fusing nautical and racing heritage with the electric revolution. E1 is anchored by its mission to accelerate sustainable and technological change, with the star power of its team owners that include high-profile celebrities and sports stars including Tom Brady, Rafael Nadal and Will Smith, bringing a global appeal. E1 CEO Rodi Basso said, “We are delighted to be partnering with such an innovative and world leading sports entertainment organisation in DAZN, in our first ever season. It’s a credit to our new and innovative approach to racing on water, and the way we combine state-of-the-art technology together with sporting jeopardy to create an exciting and unique experience to sports and entertainment fans around the world.” DAZN Group CEO Shay Segev said, “DAZN brings fans the highest quality, premium sports content, and our deal with E1 marks another exciting addition to our portfolio of sports rights. We are pleased to bring the inaugural UIM E1 World Championship to a passionate audience, by leveraging our unrivalled global reach to bring the sport to more fans across the world. DAZN’s platform is uniquely placed to give audiences the sports experience they want. E1 and DAZN are linked by a joint ambition to engage the sports fan of future, using technology to build a sports ecosystem which provides innovation, excitement and growth.”
IRONMAN
Through its two-year global broadcast partnership deal with the global leader in long-distance triathlon, DAZN will showcase all of the IRONMAN Pro Series™ races, inclusive of the split location women’s and men’s VinFast IRONMAN® World Championship races and the two-day women’s and men’s VinFast IRONMAN 70.3® World Championship triathlons, offering both new and long-time fans of IRONMAN the opportunity to experience the best of the events. These will be accessible via DAZN's ever-expanding and industry-leading free tier worldwide except U.S.A., Canada and China. The IRONMAN Group's Vice President for Content Production and Distribution Julia Polloreno said, “We are really excited to be able to welcome DAZN as one of our broadcast partners for the IRONMAN Pro Series. DAZN is synonymous with showing world-class sports to audiences all over the world, and this matches our ambition to make IRONMAN triathlon as accessible and as seamless as possible to more fans of the sport.” DAZN Managing Director of Media Services Warren Palk said, “This global partnership with IRONMAN triathlon marks yet another exciting premium addition to our free content proposition. IRONMAN races are competitions rooted in scale and we are pleased to have a significant role in increasing its global reach. We are pleased that fans of these mammoth events will be able to access the best action at no cost on DAZN’s platform.” The continuing DAZN broadcast will bring viewers as close as possible to the action so that fans, enthusiasts and fellow athletes can watch newcomers, rising stars and seasoned pros battle it out to become the first ever IRONMAN Pro Series champion. The live broadcasts will be hosted by a team of the sport’s greats including IRONMAN World Champions and Hall of Famers Greg Welch and Michellie Jones, as well as 3X IRONMAN World Champion Mirinda Carfrae, IRONMAN champions Dede Griesbauer and Michael Lovato and professional IRONMAN athlete Laura Siddall. Matt Lieto will also be providing analysis from both on the course and in the studio throughout the 2024 season. Various guest commentators also will bring additional perspectives and insights to the live coverage. The IRONMAN Pro Series 2024 continues on the following dates and venues:
• IRONMAN Vitoria-Gasteiz, July 14, 2024, Vitoria-Gasteiz, Spain
• Athletic Brewing IRONMAN Lake Placid, July 21, 2024, Lake Placid, N.Y., U.S.A.
• Mainova IRONMAN European Championship Frankfurt (MPRO), August 18, 2024, Frankfurt, Germany
• IRONMAN 70.3 European Championship Tallinn, August 25, 2024, Tallinn, Estonia
• IRONMAN 70.3 Zell am See-Kaprun, September 1, 2024, Zell am See, Austria
• VinFast IRONMAN World Championship – Women’s Race, September 22, 2024, Nice, France
• VinFast IRONMAN World Championship – Men’s Race, October 26, 2024, Kona, Hawai`i, U.S.A.
• IRONMAN 70.3 Western Australia, December 1, 2024, Busselton, Western Australia
• VinFast IRONMAN 70.3 World Championship, December 14-15, 2024, TaupÅ, New Zealand
