NEW YORK—With one month until the 2026 Milan Cortina Winter Olympics, NBCUniversal has announced that it has officially sold out of its Olympic inventory and that it set a new Winter Games ad-sales record with more advertisers investing in the upcoming Games (Feb. 6-22) than ever before.
Milan Cortina 2026 is part of what the company is calling its "Legendary February" programming that also includes the Super Bowl (Feb. 8) and the NBA All-Star Game.(Feb. 15). The trifecta has generated extraordinary demand from advertisers leading to sell out across all three tentpole moments, the company reported.
"With the resurgence of the Olympic movement, our strongest Sports Upfront in history, the early sellout of Super Bowl LX and the remarkable return of the NBA, NBCUniversal has solidified itself as a sports powerhouse and brands have taken notice,” said Mark Marshall, chairman, Global Advertising and Partnerships, NBCUniversal. “Our partners have not only seen the power of the NBC Sports portfolio, but also the incredible results our robust sports programming delivers, which is why our company now sits in its strongest position ever for a Winter Games and is kicking off 2026 officially sold out of all our Legendary February programming."
NBCU said that following the massive success of the 2024 Paris Olympics, brands were more eager than ever to commit to the Milan Cortina Games, with more than 100 new advertisers. As a result, the upcoming 2026 Winter Olympics produced the highest linear and digital revenue in Winter Games history.
Over 85% of brand partners are investing in Milan Cortina digitally and advertiser adoption of Peacock’s ad innovations has grown 31% from Paris 2024 to Milan Cortina. Additionally, nearly 60 advertisers have invested in unique marketing elements, up 174% from Beijing 2022. More than a dozen brands are investing in sponsorships to offer more live sports viewing to fans, NBCU said, up 75% from Paris 2024.
Peter Lazarus, executive vice president NBC Sports and Olympics, Advertising and Partnerships, added: “The upcoming Winter Games, surrounded by Super Bowl LX and NBA All-Star Weekend, will captivate a highly engaged and passionate audience at scale in a way that no other media company can for advertisers. For the first time in our company's history, we have seen such unprecedented demand that we are officially sold out of our inventory this far in advance of a Games. We are excited to once again deliver to fans a world-class viewing experience while providing brands with the powerful halo effect the Olympics has to offer.”
—
