Bauer Media Audio says it will bring The BRIT Awards 2026 to more than 63 million weekly listeners across Europe, renewing its partnership with the United Kingdom’s annual music awards ceremony and expanding coverage beyond the host venue.
The awards will take place for the first time at Co-op Live in Manchester on Saturday, Feb. 28. Bauer Media said U.K. brands KISS, Hits Radio and Absolute Radio will lead domestic coverage. Absolute Radio will also partner on the Group of the Year award.
According to Bauer Media Audio, coverage will include red-carpet access, content from the winners’ room, and live reporting across radio, digital, and social platforms. The media group said selected content will also be distributed across its European portfolio.
Bauer Media Audio said its coverage is designed to extend the reach of the Manchester event across its music brands in nine European markets. The media group reports a combined weekly audience of more than 63 million listeners across the U.K., Ireland, Poland, Slovakia, Norway, Sweden, Denmark, Finland and Portugal. Its portfolio includes RMF FM in Poland, Mix Megapol in Sweden and Rádio Comercial in Portugal.
There is a growing international appetite for U.K.-produced music content, and The BRIT Awards remain one of the defining moments in the global music calendar.
Simon Myciunka, president of Bauer Media Audio
Strength in scale
In the run-up to the ceremony, Bauer said KISS, Hits Radio and Absolute Radio, alongside their news teams, are covering nominations and award developments across on-air and digital platforms. Hits Radio Breakfast is scheduled to broadcast live from Co-op Live on Friday, Feb. 27, with additional editorial coverage produced on site.
On the night of the awards, Chloe Burrows of KISS Breakfast and Fleur East of Hits Radio Breakfast will host red-carpet coverage, conducting interviews for radio, social and web platforms. Bauer said teams will also report from the winners’ room to provide immediate reaction as artists collect their awards.
Simon Myciunka, president of Bauer Media Audio, said the partnership reflects the scale of the group’s European operations. “Our strength is our scale. Across nine European countries, Bauer Media’s brands are not just broadcasters — they help shape culture. There is a growing international appetite for U.K.-produced music content, and The BRIT Awards remain one of the defining moments in the global music calendar. By capturing exclusive red carpet and winners’ room content in Manchester and sharing it with audiences from Portugal to Norway, we’re connecting fans to the artists and moments they love — building shared cultural experiences across Europe in a way few others can,” said Myciunka.
Image designed in part by macrovector/Freepik.
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