Play Sports Network
The world’s largest cycling media company and community
Media
215 employees in Bath
Founded 2012
Unlimited ambition
Play Sports Network is the world’s largest cycling media company and community, a position that has been achieved in less than 10 years, reaching and engaging with more than 40.1 million hyper-engaged cycling fans and riders globally across our portfolio of road cycling, mountain biking, triathlon and e-mountain biking brands.
We aim to bring together a global community of riders to celebrate cycling. We’re passionate riders and triathletes ourselves, making unique content for other riders. Whether it is road cycling, mountain biking or triathlon, all our content aims to achieve two things: to inform and entertain.
Play Sports Network is a subsidiary of Discovery Inc., the global leader in real world entertainment.
Unlimited innovation
PSN’s first brand, Global Cycling Network (GCN), was a pioneering channel born out of Google's Original Content Programme when it looked to turn YouTube into a genuine content destination. So PSN has always been innovative and trail-blazing, and we've continued to innovate via new brands, internationalisation, programming, partnerships and the development of new technology including the GCN Mobile app: bringing everything cycling, all in one place, and its GCN+ subscription service bringing live racing and exclusive documentaries to its hyper-engaged audience every week.
Highly respected brands launched by PSN since Global Cycling Network (GCN) include the Global Mountain Bike Network (GMBN), the Global Triathlon Network (GTN), and the Electric Mountain Bike Network (EMBN); their tech- and racing-focused sister brands, GCN Tech, GMBN Tech and GCN Racing; and language localised GCN en Español, GCN Italia, GCN Japan, GCN en Français and GCN auf Deutsch channels.
Whatever their focus, all our brands engage our passionate communities across multiple touch-points, allowing us to deliver our content to them wherever they are and however they want – with more than four billion total all-time views.
Outside of our channels and GCN app, we also run GCN Books, GCN Events, GCN Club, GCN Shop and more.
Unlimited potential
Since Play Sports Network became a subsidiary of Discovery Inc in 2019 it has launched a premium GCN+ subscription channel packaging unrivalled live racing coverage with an ever-expanding library of original and exclusive cycling films and documentaries.
“The opportunity to build a world class digital destination, in multiple languages, for cycling fans the world over is one that’s just too good to miss,” said Simon Wear, founder and CEO.
With an estimated one billion bicycles in the world, and the Covid pandemic, climate crisis and Olympic Games turbo-charging awareness and take up of cycling in recent times, even the planet’s biggest cycling media company has huge opportunities for further growth.
Unlimited talent
The creative talent in our business means there are always new innovations and creative content being produced, and we are a truly collaborative business.
Every day of every week our brands deliver original content across multiple channels, formats and languages, all presented by highly authentic and credible, accomplished former pros who have competed at the highest international levels, inspiring our audiences through their enthusiasm, humour and insight.
From our script-writers to our camera operators to our production and post-production teams, our content is created by some of the best creative minds in the business. We also have highly innovative commercial and marketing teams helping us to make the most of our stellar content.
Over the next year, we plan to continue our growth and attract the best talent to work with us; we want to produce bigger and better content for our fans, and we also hope to see even more people discovering a love for a sport that we cherish.
Play Sports Network now owns and operates 16 cycling video channels and brands generating over 100 million video views every month, with 12.7 million social followers and 7.4 million subscribers.
Did you know…
Bath Community
Many people in Bath will know Greg Ingham who, with his wife Jane, owns Media Clash. We’ve gladly supported a number of initiatives over the years, from awards and seminars through to a really interesting concept where Greg brought together representatives of Bath creative businesses each month to share learnings and investigate opportunities to collaborate and grow. We also do all we can to promote the incredible and safe riding in the area from the Odd Down circuit through to the Two Tunnels project.
Finally, we like to think that we showcase the city and surrounding areas to a global audience. Not only with the incredible videos that we produce but also with the visitors we attract. Our offices are regularly visited by representatives form large cycling businesses from all over the world, the incredible history and architecture of Bath along with the amazing bars and restaurants make it very easy for us to encourage the people we work with to visit again and again.
Founded
Founded in 2012 by former Future plc COO Simon Wear out of his passion for cycling and his recognition that the way cyclists consumed media was ripe for disruption, Play Sports Network now owns and operates 16 cycling video channels and brands generating over 100 million video views every month, with 12.7 million social followers and 7.4 million subscribers. Play Sports Network also operates the GCN App, GCN+ subscription service, GCN Books, GCN Events, GCN Club, GCN Shop and more.
How does Bath influence your work?
Hills could well be the biggest influence on our work. Much of what we do is filming our ex-Pro presenters on their bikes. As residents of Bath will know, whichever way you turn to head out of the beautiful city you’ll need to climb a hill. Believe it or not, for cyclists, hills are often seen as a positive! For our mountain bike channels Bath and the surrounding area has incredible trails where we can enjoy the stunning riding and scenery in the area while also showcasing the area to an international audience. Many of our viewers are from fans based overseas so we hope we provide not only great content but also a great showcase for the area which will help attract international visitors to enjoy everything Bath has to offer.
Where are you based?
Offices – Our HQ is in Monmouth Street, Bath, and we have a large office in Trim Street.
Global
In addition we have offices in London, Italy, Spain, Germany and Japan.
Contact details