NFL, ESPN INTERNATIONAL REACH EXPANDED RIGHTS AGREEMENT
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Deal for Latin America, Brazil, Caribbean, Australia and Pacific Rim, Africa, Middle East and Israel
6 September 2010 – The National Football League and ESPN International have reached an agreement to extend and expand their relationship, delivering the NFL to nearly 100 countries worldwide, across Latin America, Brazil, the Caribbean, Australia and the Pacific Rim, the Middle East, Africa and Israel, through the end of the 2013-2014season.
The agreement adds to ESPN’s extensive coverage of the NFL around the globe, now reaching more than 150 countries outside the US. ESPN’s Monday Night Football will be available to viewers across all territories covered by the deal, including exclusive television coverage on ESPN in the UK, Australia and New Zealand.
ESPN also features extensive NFL coverage across Europe on ESPN America, including exclusive coverage of more than 125 games per season, as well as award-winning ESPN studio programming.
“Since 1992, the NFL and ESPN International have worked closely to grow the sport and the league around the world, and this agreement builds upon that successful relationship,” said Tim Bunnell, senior vice president, programming and marketing, ESPN International. “ESPN is thrilled to bring millions of fans around the world the drama and physicality of the NFL season, culminating in one of the world’s great sporting events, the Super Bowl.”
“We are very excited to extend our relationship with ESPN,” said Hans Schroeder, Vice President of Media Strategy and Development. “We are very focused on providing more content in more places to our fans worldwide and ESPN is a great partner to help us accomplish this.”
Under the agreement, ESPN will showcase more NFL programming than ever before, highlighted by:
- Live coverage each season of the Super Bowl;
- Live coverage of 49 regular season and playoff games per season in Brazil, Australia and the Pacific Rim, sub-Saharan Africa, and Israel;
- Live coverage of 41 regular season and playoff games per season in Mexico, Central and South America, and Caribbean;
- Live coverage of 84 regular season and playoff games per season in the Middle East and North Africa;
- ESPN’s Monday Night Football in all territories;
- Internet highlight rights and live Monday Night Football internet streaming in select markets;
- ESPN remains the exclusive syndication agent to cruise ships worldwide ESPN networks will feature NFL Films original programming, including Super Bowl Highlights, Yearbooks, Greatest Games, NFL Films Presents and more.
Additionally, in Mexico, ESPN will launch NFL Primetime, a weekly Spanish-language highlights and commentary program airing every Sunday at 7:30pmET preceding live Sunday Night Football.
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CONTACTS:
Ardi Dwornik
ESPN – Latin America, Brazil and North America
ardi.r.dwornik@espn.com or +1 212 456 0265
Paul Melvin
ESPN – Europe, Middle East, Africa and Asia/Pacific Rim
paul.melvin@espn.com or +44 (0)208 222 2104
ABOUT THE NFL
The National Football League is America’s most popular sports league, comprised of 32 franchises that compete each year to win the Super Bowl, the world’s biggest annual sporting event. Founded in 1920, the NFL developed the model for the successful modern sports league, including extensive revenue sharing, competitive excellence, strong franchises across the board, and national distribution. The NFL is the industry leader on a wide range of fronts. Business Week magazine calls the NFL “one of America’s best-run businesses.”
ABOUT ESPN INTERNATIONAL
ESPN International is a division of ESPN, Inc. ESPN International has grown to include ownership — in whole or in part — of 46 television networks outside of the United States, as well as a variety of brand extension businesses, which allow ESPN to reach fans in over 200 countries and territories. ESPN International business entities include television, radio, print, internet, broadband, wireless, consumer products, and event management. ESPN International and its holdings maintain offices or production facilities in key locations around the world including Bangalore, Beijing, Buenos Aires, Delhi, Dublin, Hong Kong, London, Mexico City, Miami, Montpellier, Mumbai, Paris, São Paulo, Seoul, Shanghai, Singapore, Taiwan, and Toronto. ESPN is 80 percent owned by ABC, Inc., which is an indirect subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company. The Hearst Corporation holds a 20 percent interest in ESPN. The Walt Disney Company, together with its subsidiaries and affiliates, is a leading diversified international family entertainment and media enterprise with four business segments: media networks, parks and resorts, studio entertainment and consumer products.