Free-to-air French Open guaranteed until 2021

The French Open will continue to be shown free-to-air on UK television.

Current rights holder ITV has retained the rights to live tennis from Roland Garros in a new three year deal running until 2021.

The broadcaster, which has held the rights to show the tennis Grand Slam tournament since 2012, will now take its coverage into the next decade under the agreement, which encompasses the showpiece event from 2019 until 2021.

ITV4 will continue to broadcast comprehensive coverage each year, with a guaranteed minimum of 90 hours devoted to each tournament. The action will also be available on the ITV Hub.

Niall Sloane, ITV Director of Sport, said:

"Bringing viewers free to air coverage of one of the real delights of the sporting calendar at Roland Garros in recent years has been a privilege, so we're hugely pleased to announce this new deal to keep the tournament with ITV. France Federation Tennis have been absolutely brilliant as partners and we look forward to continuing working with them over the coming years."

Meanwhile, Eurosport remains the pay TV rights holder for this period; it is wooing viewers with enhanced coverage, including a UHD option on Sky and Virgin Media.