The UCI Mountain Bike World Series is born, all MTB under one brand name

A few weeks before the 2023 MTB calendar starts, the UCI and Warner Bros. Discovery have just announced the UCI Mountain Bike World Series, a new brand that brings together the XCO, Short Track, Marathon, DH and Enduro World Cups.

The UCI Mountain Bike World Series brings all of MTB under one brand name

The arrival of Warner Bros. Discovery to mountain biking is bringing about the biggest transformation in the sport in recent memory, and that's saying a lot considering that no race has been held since the union between the International Cycling Union (UCI) and Warner Bros. The first big change was the programming of a unified MTB 2023 calendar with venues that will host several World Cup races of different modalities on the same date.

Where to watch the UCI Mountain Bike World Series

The organization assures that there will be more live coverage and more ways to follow the races than ever before. The UCI XCO, XCC and DHI World Cup events of the UCI Mountain Bike World Series will be available live and on-demand on Discovery+, the Eurosport app and globally on GCN+. Although this is something that is yet to be defined and more ways to watch it will be announced in the coming months.

The UCI Mountain Bike World Series will unite the main mountain bike formats under a single brand for the first time in history. A simpler way to make themselves known to the general public and with which they intend to reach more people through the new broadcast channels.

UCI President David Lappartient said: “The global popularity of mountain bike is on the rise, and by combining all its major formats as well as racing for Elite and amateur riders in one major series, we will further increase the appeal of this discipline. With its festival atmosphere, mix of racing and expanded live coverage, the UCI Mountain Bike World Series offers a fresh and appealing experience for athletes, hardened fans and newcomers to the mountain bike community.”

Chris Ball, CEO of ESO Sports, said: “By creating a single global platform that unifies the major racing formats with UCI World Cup status for the first time, the new UCI Mountain Bike World Series will also allow for the integration and growth of amateur, pathway and festival events to UCI World Cup racing. Our long-term goal is to elevate the major racing formats of the UCI World Cup, taking the athletes and teams to a new level. We also want to maintain the ability to entertain and engage mountain bikers at all levels. The future is incredibly exciting and we are honoured to usher in a new era of the sport.”