The BBC has long had exclusive rights to broadcasting the tennis from Wimbledon, but for this year’s tournament which kicks off on Centre Court at 13:00 BST today, Google-owned video streaming behemoth YouTube will also be broadcasting the play around the world.
The BBC will still be streaming the action with the UK, but YouTube has snapped up the exclusive internet streaming rights for the rest of the world, who will be tuning in to see the Likes of Federer, Nadal, Djokovic, Murray, and others compete for the most prestigious tennis trophy in the world.
However, YouTube will not just be showing the live action on its Wimbledon Channel. They are also offering interviews with the players, behind-the-scenes- footage, and classic matches if there’s ever a rain delay, with the broadcasting fees for the live stream footed by luxury watch maker Rolex.
Announcing the news on the official YouTube blog, they said:
Roger Federer, Andy Murray, Novak Djokovic, David Ferrer and Rafael Nadal are already in London getting ready for Wimbledon, the world’s oldest and most prestigious Grand Slam tennis tournament.
This year, supported by Rolex, Wimbledon’s YouTube channel will have exclusive access throughout The Championships on Live @ Wimbledon.
Catch the key moments of the tennis, interviews, behind the scenes and press conferences throughout the Wimbledon fortnight. You can also relive all the glory days of Wimbledon’s golden moments, such as one of the greatest matches ever played, the 2008 Wimbledon Men’s Singles Final: Rafael Nadal vs. Roger Federer.
Wimbledon has long established itself as one of the most forward-looking international sports events, having had a partnership with IBM lasting 14 years, and this year Sony is partnering with the BBC to trial 4K “super HD” broadcasts of the events.
Photograph by Bruno Girin