For a while, there had been many wondering why NBC continued to broadcast the French Open after losing other tennis rights. On Friday, ahead of the tournament’s women’s and men’s finals Saturday and Sunday, it came out that this year’s event would be the last for NBC for a decade. That was with those rights heading to Warner Bros. Discovery’s TNT Sports on a 10-year, $65-million deal. And that led to NBC play-by-play voice Noah Eagle narrating a farewell to the famed event at the conclusion of their broadcast coverage (it continued on their Peacock streaming service) Carlos Alcaraz’s five-set win over Alexander Zverev Sunday:
Noah Eagle signs off NBC’s last French Open for now. “We thank the French Tennis Federation, the players, coaches, and staff who helped make our five decades at Roland Garros so memorable. We wish them, and their new partners at TNT Sports, the very best.” pic.twitter.com/1nm7NnHVHI
— Awful Announcing (@awfulannouncing) June 9, 2024
Eagle, who was calling his first French Open here, says “Back in 1975, NBC became the first American network to televise the French Open. We’ve done so every year since 1983. We’ve learned this weekend that this will be our last, at least for now.
“We thank the French Tennis Federation, the players, coaches, and staff who helped make our five decades at Roland Garros so memorable and successful. We wish them, and their new partners at TNT Sports, the very best.”
Analyst Mary Carillo then says “They’re going to love it here. Every year. I mean, these two weeks mean so much to me, Noah. And I’m so glad I got to do it with you.”
Eagle then says “Like I said, this was an honor, to have you, and to have John [McEnroe], and to have Maria [Taylor], and really, our entire NBC Sports team.”
Carillo says “We’ve got a good squad.”
Eagle says “You can feel the energy that this event produces.”
Carillo and Eagle then talk about NBC’s upcoming Olympic coverage from Paris, which both Carillo and Eagle will be involved in (but not on tennis, at least not per what’s been announced so far), and about Eagle’s work learning French, and about Alcaraz’s win. And then Eagle closes with “And now, on behalf of the 100s of NBC team members who have so proudly brought the French Open into your homes, Noah Eagle saying au revoir (see, getting slightly better) for now from Roland Garros. Talk soon.” They then show a montage of various notable NBC French Open clips over the years.
As mentioned, this move comes after many critics questioning NBC still broadcasting the French Open after losing other rights, and complaining about many of their matches being on a streaming service in Peacock. (However, that may not get better from an access point of view; it remains to be seen how TNT Sports will handle their French Open matches, but they don’t have a broadcast network, and we’ll see how they split things between their linear cable networks and streaming service Max.) And it is notable to see those rights move on elsewhere, and to see how NBC signed off from their coverage here.
[Awful Announcing on X/Twitter]
