BBC stays on court with LTA extension

The BBC has extended its LTA rights deal until the end of 2027.

This means the broadcaster will continue to air the Queen’s Championships across linear, iPlayer, and the BBC Sport website, as well as the LTA’s Eastbourne and Nottingham events on iPlayer and the BBC Sport website. 

Queen’s will include a women’s tournament this year, for the first time in half a century. The Kite Factory recently produced a video campaign promoting this to audiences, starring Emma Raducanu, Naomi Osaka and Katie Boulter, who will all be playing - which you can see an image of above. Carlos Alcaraz and Jack Draper are set to headline the men’s event. 

Queen’s takes place ahead of Wimbledon, which the BBC also has a deal to show until 2027.

Alex Kay-Jelski, director of BBC Sport, said: “The grass court season is synonymous with British summer, and for BBC Sport it marks the start of a huge summer of women’s sporting events, kicking off with the women’s tournament at Queen’s. Continuing our partnership with the LTA for a further three years including the streaming of Eastbourne and Nottingham ensures world-class tennis remains free-to-air for audiences.”

Chris Pollard, LTA managing director of commercial & operations, added: “The LTA is committed to opening up tennis to the largest possible audience across Britain, and the BBC plays a vital role in helping us achieve this. This year promises to be the LTA’s best grass court season yet, with women and men competing in all our events for the very first time. This partnership will enable people right across the country to watch British stars and top-ranked international players on free-to-air platforms across three weeks of inspiring, world-class tennis.”