The endurance-focused obstacle racing series, Spartan Race, is set to kick off a new partnership with Facebook that will feature live video streaming coverage of races, starting with the Spartan World Championship.
Spartan teamed up with Facebook and its new Watch video platform to broadcast live events through the 2017 Spartan season. The Spartan Race Facebook Watch live streams will feature an array of cameras, including drone coverage, replays, play-by-play and color commentary, as well as behind-the-scenes footage. The inaugural Facebook Watch live stream event is set to cover the 16-mile, Reebok Spartan World Championship race at Squaw Valley Resort in Lake Tahoe, Calif. on Sept. 30 and Oct. 1.
Spartan joins Major League Baseball, Major League Soccer, Liga MX and World Surf League to have competitions streamed live on Watch.
“Producing live broadcasts of our races was a major focus for us in 2017 and an important part of Spartan and the OCR [obstacle races] industry’s growth,” Spartan COO Jeffrey Connor said in a statement.
“Partnering with Facebook to stream our events exclusively on Watch will bring the action to sports fans across the globe, showcasing the pure grit of the fastest growing participation sport while helping Spartan spread its message of healthy transformation to a new audience of millions.”
The Facebook Watch and Spartan deal is scheduled to include live streamed race broadcasts of Spartan’s upcoming “Stadium Series,” which features races at places such as AT&T Park in San Francisco, and other races throughout the year. The mobile-friendly live streaming Spartan coverage will also feature interviews, live-polling, and other ways for fans to engage in real-time.
On top of live races, Spartan will produce a weekly workout show on Facebook Watch. Facebook users can add the Spartan workout show and race coverage to their “watchlists” by following Spartan LIVE.
The @TahoeNorth countdown begins. Tune in, 9.30.17 @ 7AM PT. #RoadToTahoe #SpartanRaceWC17 Presented by The @USArmy. https://t.co/Sa7EDcqSGW pic.twitter.com/Yaz0W8jOMa
— Spartan Race (@SpartanRace) September 22, 2017