For the first time the 2024 Summer Olympics will be streamed on the iHeartRadio app under a deal between NBC Sports and iHeartMedia. Ahead of the start of the Paris games, the two companies have launched a new podcast hosted by “Saturday Night Live” cast member Bowen Yang and actor-comedian Matt Rogers – the duo that also hosts iHeart’s Las Culturistas podcast.
Rogers says their show will offer a different take on the games than what the sports podcasts will offer, with each episode featuring a dose of the hosts before diving into the games. “We’re going to get around to the Olympics. It’s called Two Guys, Five Rings, so you’re going to have to get through us before you get to the Olympics part,” he says on the show’s preview.
In the 15-episode podcast special, Two Guys, Five Rings: Matt, Bowen & The Olympics, Yang and Rogers break down the top storylines, discuss the athletes to watch and their results, obsess over Paris culture and find out what really goes on in the Olympic Village.
The first episode debuts today (June 25) with new episodes releasing each Tuesday. The Olympic Games Paris 2024 are scheduled for July 26 to Aug. 11.
The Two Guys, Five Rings: Matt, Bowen & The Olympics podcast debuts alongside 24/7 play-by-play coverage of the games and other exclusive audio content on iHeartRadio. In addition, iHeart will be producing Olympic-specific episodes of some of its top podcasts, including Stuff You Missed in History Class and Ridiculous History. And its radio personalities will be talking up NBC’s coverage of the games.
The iHeartRadio broadcasts will focus on Team USA, with coverage expected to include Team USA men’s and women’s basketball, soccer, and volleyball, along with swimming, gymnastics, track & field, and more.
“This partnership allows iHeart’s large audio audience to hear NBCU’s Olympic coverage away from their televisions and digital devices, as well as engage with the Games through iHeart’s celebrated and entertaining podcasts,” NBC Olympics President Gary Zenkel said in an announcement.
NBCUniversal owns the U.S. media rights to the Olympic Games through 2032, which are scheduled for Paris (2024), Milan Cortina (2026), Los Angeles (2028) and Brisbane (2032). The host city for the 2030 Olympic Winter Games has not yet been chosen.