CBC Olympic broadcasts

On August 1, 2012, the CBC announced that it had acquired the Canadian broadcast rights to the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi and the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio de Janeiro, returning the Games to the broadcaster for the first time since 2008. While financial details were not announced, the CBC did state that it was a "financially and fiscally responsible bid", which would carry on the organization's 60-year history of Olympic broadcasting.[7] The CBC sublicensed coverage of the Games to TSN and Sportsnet (which were the main cable networks of the Bell/Rogers consortium) in English,[8][9] and TVA Sports in French.[10] Beginning with the 2014 Winter Paralympics, the Canadian Paralympic Committee acquired the Canadian media rights to the Paralympic Games (which had previously been held by the Bell/Rogers consortium); as part of sub-licensing agreement, the broadcasts are produced in conjunction with CBC Sports and other partners.[11][12]

On October 28, 2014, it was announced that the CBC had extended its rights to the Olympics through 2020, and that it would continue its arrangements with Bell Media and Rogers Media to provide production resources and distribute coverage through the TSN and Sportsnet networks. The CBC leads production of the telecasts and sells all advertising time, "top-tier" events are reserved primarily for CBC Television, and all events are streamed online on the CBC's Olympic microsites. Again, financial details were not disclosed and the bid was described as being "fiscally responsible", although the broadcasters involved did disclose that they planned to "break even" on their coverage. The renewed partnership came amidst changes and cuts at CBC Sports, as the Olympics remain the only major sports property whose Canadian rights are owned by the CBC, having recently lost its rights to FIFA tournaments (such as the FIFA World Cup)[13] and the National Hockey League to Bell and Rogers respectively (although the CBC continues to air NHL games through a time-brokerage agreement with Rogers), and having announced that, aside from the Olympics, it would no longer pursue broadcast rights to professional sports. Rogers Media president Keith Pelley justified the partnership, stating the number of platforms involved would "satisfy the demands" for Olympic content by Canadian viewers.[14][15][16]

In October 2015, the CBC re-branded its weekend sports broadcasts under the blanket title Road to the Olympic Games; the new brand emphasized the CBC''s year-round focus on Olympic sports[17] Also in October 2015, it was announced the CBC that had renewed its rights to cover the 2022 and 2024 Games. [18]

The CBC reported that at least 31.9 million viewers watched a portion of its coverage of the 2016 Summer Olympics, with an average viewership of 2.1 million. The gains were credited to a strong medal performance by Canada during the first 10 days of the Games, and notable performances by Penny Oleksiak and Andre De Grasse; ratings peaked during the men's 100 metre final, featuring De Grasse and world record holder Usain Bolt, which was seen by 6.92 million viewers.[19]

The CBC reported that at least 31 million viewers had watched a portion of its coverage of the 2018 Winter Olympics, while average primetime viewership also saw increases over 2014.[20] After the 2020 Summer Olympics (delayed to 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic), the CBC reported that at least 28 million viewers had watched a portion of its coverage, a decline over 2016. The broadcaster also announced that streaming of the Games-related video content was up by 62% over the 2018 Winter Olympics, with 61% of this being live streams.[21] On April 6, 2022, the CBC confirmed that it had renewed its rights to the Olympics through 2032.[22] The following March, CBC renewed its rights to the Paralympics through 2026.[12]