THE NEXT SUMMER Olympic Games will once again be brought into Irish homes exclusively by RTÉ.

The national broadcaster has today announced that it has secured “extensive” radio and television rights for the Rio 2016 Games.

The deal will also see RTÉ host coverage of the upcoming Sochi Winter Olympics on their news channel RTÉ News Now.

The rights are sub-licensed by Sportfive International, who were awarded the license to broadcast in 40 European countries by the IOC. Sportive CEO Shaila-Ann Rao said: “we are confident that RTE will use this experience to provide top quality live coverage and enjoyable programming, both at Sochi 2014 and Rio 2016.”

In a statement released today, the national broadcaster’s head of sport Ryle Nugent said that airing both winter and summer Games is a major part of their public service remit.

“Whilst in line with our commitment to reduce our sports rights budget,” Nugent says, “this deal represents a significant investment by RTÉ, particularly in the current economic climate.

“As the national public service broadcaster, we are proud to provide free-to-air coverage of such a major international event, featuring Irish competitors alongside some of the best athletes in the world, and we feel that it is a key part of our public service remit.”