‘Heated Rivalry’ tops the charts as WBD posts record streaming for the Olympics
Warner Bros. Discovery has achieved significant viewership gains across its European streaming and pay-TV platforms for the Milan-Cortina 2026 Winter Olympics, with the HBO Max series ‘Heated Rivalry’ emerging as one of the most-watched entertainment titles among Games viewers.
The media giant’s HBO Max and Discovery+ services delivered the strongest streaming performance of the Winter Olympics to date during the opening days of the competition, surpassing both the Beijing 2022 and PyeongChang 2018 benchmarks. Total hours watched on streaming platforms increased 102% compared to Beijing 2022, with triple-digit growth in France, Germany, Italy and the UK
According to WBD, the number of subscribers streaming Milan-Cortina content surpassed the entire Beijing 2022 audience after just three days of competition. Total consumption across all platforms increased by 39% compared to Beijing in 2022 at the comparable stage.
Subscribers engaged with Olympic content also consumed substantial entertainment programming, with HBO Max’s ‘Heated Rivalry’ and ‘The Pitt’ Season 2 among the most-watched titles for Games viewers. The Crave Original series, which follows two hockey players from rival teams as they navigate their romance, has captivated audiences since its U.S. premiere in late November, catapulting stars Hudson Williams and Connor Storrie to global fame.
The show’s cultural momentum intersected directly with the Games when HBO Max announced that Williams and Storrie had been selected as official torchbearers at the Olympic Torch Relay, which concluded in Milan on February 6 ahead of the opening ceremony. The series has been renewed for a second season.
Linear television continued to perform strongly despite wider industry trends, with WBD’s Eurosport and TNT Sports channels seeing a 33% growth in hours watched compared to Beijing in 2022. France saw Eurosport rise 47%, while Germany recorded a 50% growth and the UK and Ireland recorded a 60% increase on TNT Sports channels.
“We are pleased with the significant increase in viewership and engagement during the first week of the Games, demonstrating that our coverage on both Eurosport, across Europe, and TNT Sports, in the United Kingdom, is recognized locally as the destination for leading sports coverage,” said Andrew Georgiou, president and managing director of WBD Sports Europe. “This quality, combined with our streaming platforms HBO Max and Discovery+, the one place to ensure you watch every moment and every medal, has delivered incredible viewing experiences and results.”
Coverage of the Winter Games will run until February 22 on WBD’s European platforms.
