Sport Industry Group

BBC steps in to take back Boat Race rights- 19 Mar 2009 00:00:00

The prestigious Oxford v Cambridge University Boat Race will remain a televised event after the BBC stepped in to take the rights for the traditional rowing race following ITV's decision not to renew its existing deal after this year's event.

Incumbent broadcaster ITV had announced last year that it would not be renewing its deal to televise the event after this year’s race leading to fears that the Boat Race would drop off the television schedules all together.

However a new five-year-deal means that the BBC will broadcast the event from 2010 on television and radio as well as the BBC Sport website, BBC iPlayer and BBC World.

Since 1998, the Boat Race has no longer been protected by government rules where major sporting events remain ring-fenced against non-terrestrial networks.

ITV won the rights to the Boat Race in 2004, beating off a bid from the BBC which had held the rights since 1927.

This year's race, which will be the last shown on ITV, takes place on Sunday 29th March.

The race pits teams from the Universities of Oxford and Cambridge against each other on the Putney to Mortlake stretch of the Thames - a distance of four miles, 374 yards.

The event is shown in 113 countries around the world and viewing figures peaked in 2004 when 8.9m people tuned in to watch Cambridge take victory.

In March 2008, Oxford won the 154th University Boat Race, their third win in four years although Cambridge still narrowly lead the total number of races held - by 79 to 74.