Shanghai Media Group’s Great Sports launched a dual-track strategy combining four broadcasting bands with a commercial ecosystem called “Great Beat” during a value-sharing event. The network unveiled a 14-month master calendar spanning November 2026 through December 2027, locking in continuous coverage across Formula 1, tennis, and marathon majors without scheduling gaps.
The network’s content transformation is anchored by four distinct programming bands: news specials, competitive sports, trend-focused athletics, and mass participation events. Statistics released at the event indicate daily audience readership rose from 146.1万 to 301.9万. During the FIFA World Cup cycle, Great Sports published over 5,000 items generating more than 7亿 reads and 30亿 total touchpoints—a 12-fold year-over-year increase—while Asian Games coverage yielded 1,107 items and 2.7亿 video views.
The newly unveiled 14-month schedule covers elite domestic and international competitions, including the Chinese Super League, CBA, NBA, Australian Open, Wimbledon, F1, and nine major marathons. Commentator lineups across football, basketball, motorsports, running, tennis, volleyball, and mind sports were also introduced alongside AI digital commentary projects that earned a nomination for the 2026 Asian Television Awards in the Best AI Application category.
Ecosystem Expansion Through Great Beat
Commercial operations now center on the “Great Beat” (Great Sports Great Beat) ecosystem IP, operating under the core slogan “Find Your Beat.” Designed to function as a media supply-chain anchor, the model offers brands end-to-end integration spanning content production, influencer seeding, offline activation, and retail transactions. Built on a modular “capability blocks” framework, the structure already encompasses consumer products such as Great Haha, Great Wow, Great Mix, and Great Weekend. Organizers announced plans to roll out three seasonal lifestyle platforms—the Great Sports Fan Carnival, Shanghai Tennis Lifestyle Season, and Shanghai Running Lifestyle Season—while expanding campus engagement and the “Great Sports Family” influencer network.
Targeted Action Across Three Core Sports Verticals
To bridge broadcast capabilities, event resources, and commercial demand, Great Sports established three dedicated sporting tracks focused on motorsport, racquet sports, and distance running. Holding broadcasting rights since 2003, the F1 track has covered all 24 grands prix for 23 years. The motorsport division supports a digital community exceeding 2000万 fans, a private F1 community of over 3,000 members, and the production of the documentary film Zhou Guanyu: The Chinese Driver. Commercial offerings utilize a three-dimensional ecosystem model incorporating studio advertising, digital customization, fan carnivals, IMAX theatrical screenings, immersive viewing galas, culinary programming, and official trading cards.
In racquet sports, the network holds broadcast rights for the Australian Open, Wimbledon, and the Shanghai Masters. The initiative features a pickleball celebrity tour headlined by Andre Agassi and Steffi Graf, alongside the CPC Point Series, the “Hu Ke Pi Di” city league, the Great Beat Shanghai Tennis Lifestyle Season, and graded tennis challenges. Meanwhile, the distance running track capitalizes on media ownership of World Marathon Majors and 24 elite tour events. Integration across television screens, digital platforms, and live execution features the “Great Sports Run” initiative, the “Goprod” track accompaniment audio product, and the Shanghai Marathon pre-race carnival.
Unresolved Questions Surrounding 2027 Implementation
While Great Sports has established its 14-month operational roadmap and structured its commercial tiers through 2027, exact revenue targets and specific brand partnership agreements for the newly launched Great Beat modular products remain undisclosed. Broadcasters have yet to confirm full broadcast schedules for secondary tiered events outside of the major marquee competitions listed on the master calendar.
