Two short years ago, we had never had it so good as pro cycling fans in the UK. There was GCN+ at our fingertips, for under £10 a month, with essentially every bike race you could ever wish for, live and on-demand, without ads. There was Eurosport, if you were someone who liked to watch cycling on your TV old-school, with endless adverts for Renault and river cruises on the Danube. During certain races, most pertinently the Tour de France, there was also live coverage on ITV4, and highlights for other events too.
We didn’t know how good it was. Those halcyon days are now behind us, and becoming ever more distant. GCN+ closed at the end of 2023, bringing an end to two great years; ITV4 will lose the rights to showing the Tour de France at the end of 2025; and as of next month, Eurosport will be no more. Cycling fans in the UK (and Ireland) will have to pay more than ever to watch cycling on TNT Sports, from small events like the E3 Saxo Classic to the biggest, like the Tour de France. When I say more than ever, it is a 344% increase on current monthly fees for Discovery+ subscribers - from £6.99 to £30.99. If you’re someone who just watches Eurosport through your current package, that’s a subscription that you’ve never had to pay for before.
