(Reuters) – Warner Bros Discovery’s TNT Sports has signed a 10-year deal to broadcast the French Open in the U.S. starting next year, the media giant said on Tuesday, as it looks to strengthen its coverage of live sports.
The deal with the French Tennis Federation for an average of about $65 million per year, according to CNBC, will add Roland Garros to TNT Sports’ broadcast of live matches across its networks, including TBS and truTV and on its streaming service, Max.
Media companies are pouring millions of dollars into buying rights to live sporting events as they look to attract loyal audiences in a crowded TV market.
The announcement follows reports suggesting Warner Bros Discovery could lose media rights to the widely watched professional basketball league, National Basketball Association.
In May, TNT network signed a five-year deal with Walt Disney-owned ESPN to broadcast select College Football Playoff games.
Warner Bros Discovery has also formed Venu Sports, a sports-streaming service, with Walt Disney and Fox Corp that will be launched this fall.
(Reporting by Jaspreet Singh in Bengaluru; Editing by Mohammed Safi Shamsi)
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