“The problem with bunch sprints is that you often get a boring run-up. That is difficult to sell" - Renaat Schotte on cycling's struggles to crack worldwide TV market

Whilst the World Tour peloton is arguably as multicultural as it ever has been, there is still much work to be done in bringing the sport to as wider audience as possible. At least this is the opinion of Sporza commentator, Renaat Schotte. 

“I am a big fan of bunch sprints, but the problem is that you often get a boring run-up. That is difficult to sell on television these days,” Schotte explains of his viewpoint via the De Grote Plaat podcast. Nevertheless, he does see a potential solution. "You have to get rid of integral broadcasts for a wide audience. You put every stage of a Grand Tour behind a paywall and leave only the ending accessible to everyone.”

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“Outside Flanders and other cycling-crazy areas, the course is not manageable,” Schotte continues. “If you want to sell the product to the average Argentinian or Chinese worldwide, you have to switch to a different format. In the rest of the world, people are mainly concerned with survival. If you spend an hour and a half of your time watching a sporting event, that's already a lot."

Another note for the Sporza commentator is changing the broadcast time of races to later in the afternoon. "There is nothing wrong with that. I sometimes yearn for that myself," he concludes. "I would like to see the beginning for myself, but if you want to sell it to the general public, you have to shorten the broadcast on television."

It's an interesting debate definitely, but what are your thoughts? How can cycling best showcase itself to the worldwide TV viewership? Let us know what you think!

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