Being an exceptional event, the Dakar Rally boasts unprecedented media coverage. The adventure undertaken by the first competitors attracted in the beginning French TV channels, but soon the whole of Europe, and later on other continents overseas, caught the bug. Now, the images of the Rally are broadcasted in 190 countries all over the world. The breathtaking beauty of the landscapes, as well as the adventures and misadventures of riders and drivers, has seduced viewers, listeners and readers all over the world. Around 1800 journalists have been accredited to cover the Dakar Rally this year.

 

TELEVISION

In almost 190 countries, a total of 70 channels will broadcast the race. Every day three TV helicopters with capture the images of the special stage and send them in a race against the clock. The 22 editing stations installed near the finish line will work relentlessly to guarantee a fast and efficient relay capacity. A total of seven hours of program content will be broadcasted daily.

• 1200 program content hours broadcasted in 5 continents.

 

PHOTOGRAPHS

The Dakar Rally allows for spectacular photographs. The most renowned photojournalists have found that this rally offers them an amazing opportunity to take their talent to new heights. They leave every day with press vehicles to find the perfect spot from which to shoot. Representatives of the most important media (Presse Sport, AFP, AP, Reuters, Getty, DPPI) will have a bird’s eye view of the head of the race on helicopter.

• 60 photographers will cover the whole rally
• 10 photo agencies

 

Written press - Radio

In the agenda of any sports journalist, the coverage of the Dakar is a must. Journalists follow great riders and drivers in a press vehicle or by plane to tell the world about their feats.

• 156 accredited journalists (written press, agencies and radios)
• 260 permanent journalists and 1500 representatives of media from Argentina, Chile and Peru.

Pictures from the Dakar will be broadcast by 70 TV stations covering a total of 190 countries. Even before, during and after the different TV programs dedicated to the world’s biggest rally, fans will be able to follow the technical verifications and stages online at www.dakar.com (in four languages), using mobile applications or on social networks. A short overview of the different media …

Dakar.com, all day long

• As soon as the wheels start spinning, live coverage is set to begin with a flow of information and detailed facts from the rally. Photos will be transmitted from the rally and published in the gallery of the respective stage.
• The live-tracking application has been revamped. Thanks to Iritrack, users can follow with high precision the progress made by their favorite pilots along the way.
• As soon as the fastest pilots finish the race, users can read their first-hand reactions on the website.
• The full ranking broken down by categories is available right after the stage together with videos providing a summary of the stage, pictures of the most beautiful landscapes taken with the help of on-board cameras and the most captivating photographs.

The Dakar on your smartphone...

• Based on the contents made available on www.dakar.com, an application has been developed for Androïd and iPhones. This app allows users to keep track of the current state of play at any time and everywhere.

... on Facebook and Twitter

• A few days before the start, the rally has exceeded the 300,000-fans-threshold. During the 15 days of the Dakar, users can find breaking news, photos and videos on the official Facebook site.
• The breaking news will be published on the Twitter account that boasts 20,000 subscribers. Spectators who wish to come out to the track will be informed on the location of the “spectator areas” where they can follow the rally from a safe spot.

Virtual Rally Game

• More than 125.000 gamers chose this formula last year. The official online game allows internet users to test their ability on the rally’s route. Just like the real-life participants, they need to navigate and decide just how aggressive they want to be behind the wheel, what the right tire pressure is etc.

List of Television broadcasters with dedicated coverage territory by territory

190 Territories
70 TV channels

 

WESTERN EUROPE

• France - France 2/3/4
• Netherlands - RTL 7
• Germany- ZDF
• Northern Belgium – VTM
• Italy – Sportitalia, RAI
• Austria - Servus TV, Redbull TV
• Spain - Teledeporte, TV3 Catalunya
• Portugal - SIC

EASTERN EUROPE

• Russia - RUSSIA 2
• Poland – TVP1, TVP2
• Latvia – LNT, TV5
• Czech Republic - CT4
• Lithuania - Baltijos TV
• Serbia - RTS
• Ukraine - Inter TV
• Bulgaria - BNT1
• Hungary - TV2
• Macedonia - A1 TV

AMERICAS

• USA - Versus TV
• Brazil – Speed Latin America
• Argentina - Canal 7
• Chile –TVN
• Peru - Canal7
• Guatemala - Canal 3
• Paraguay - Telefuturo

MIDDLE EAST

• UAE - Dubai sport channel
• Qatar - Al Jazeera sport channel

ASIA / AUSTRALIA

• Australia - SBS and Fox Sport
• China – Hunan TV
• Japan - J Sports
• New Zealand - Sky TV
• Hong Kong -TVB

PAN-REGIONAL

• Eurosport (59 countries - Europe, Northern Africa)
• Fox Sport Latin America (41 countries – Latin America )
• Al Jazeera Sports (23 countries - Middle East)
• Dubai Sports Channel (23 countries - Middle East)
• ESPN Star (20 countries - Asia)
• Eurosport Asia (15 countries – Asia)
• Supersport (52 countries - Africa)

WORLD NEWS

• Reuters (473 member channels 103 countries)
• SNTV (250 member channels 78 countries)
• UER (66 member channels 46 countries)
• Deutsche Welle (worldwide news channel)
• TV5 Monde (200 countries, 180Mio households)

FRANCE TELEVISIONS, A TRADITIONAL PARTNER OF THE DAKAR

France Télévisions, thistorical Partner of the Dakar, crosses the Atlantic to South America for the fourth consecutive year to cover the Dakar rally from January 1^st to 15^th.

The various TV channels and websites of the France Télévisions group will follow the race starting on January 1^st, 2012. Every day, and during the entire rally, various TV shows will focus on the 2012 Dakar and provide viewers with full coverage.

	Live coverage every day* from 6:40 PM to 7:40 PM and also on sport.francetv.fr Le Dakar Hosted by Gérard Holtz, Luc Alphand et Elodie Gossuin One hour of Live broadcast from the heart of the race with: - comments from Jean-François Kerckaert from one of the official helicopters from the organisation to follow the end of the stage in the car category - reports by Richard Coffin and Gaël Robic from the Bivouac Dominique Le Glou proposera par ailleurs chaque jour dans cette émission son Carnet de route, avec des reportages en immersion au sein des pays traversés.
	Live coverage every day* after the Tout le Sport show Le Journal du Dakar Hosted by Gérard Holtz et Luc Alphand
	Every day* in the late evening (26 minutes) Bivouac Gérard Holtz and Luc Alphand meet the competitors in the bivouac and comment the best images of the day.
	On Sundays 8th and 15th January Stade 2 With special reports Live from Copiapo (Chile) and Lima (Peru).

*except on January 8th (rest day)

Viewers can also watch the various TV shows about the Dakar, as well as the race summaries of the news programmes, Tout le Sport and Stade 2, on pluzz.fr and sport.francetv.fr.

The sport.francetv.fr website will also provide reporter Christian Grégoire’s full coverage of the 2012 Dakar. Grégoire’s daily reports (“Dakar Inside”, “Carnet de route” Roadmap and “Esprit Dakar”) will be available on the website. The French website will also provide real time coverage of the race and all interesting information about the rally, what happens backstage, as well as the standings in real time and per category.

The “Sur les pistes du Dakar” blog, written by Jean-François Kerckaert’s during the reconnoitering, is also available on sport.francetv.fr.

Press contacts > Jennifer Armand – +33 1 56 22 22 90 / Fanta Traoré – +33 1 56 22 50 77