ESPN in the UK

ESPN to broadcast two live quarter-finals: Manchester City v Barnsley on Saturday 9th March and Millwall v Blackburn Rovers on Sunday 10th March

ESPN has confirmed the two FA Cup Sixth Round games it will broadcast exclusively live in March as the remaining eight teams battle it out for a place in the semi-finals at Wembley. The action kicks off at 5.30pm on Saturday 9^th March as Manchester City welcome Barnsley to the Etihad, then Millwall take on Blackburn Rovers at 2pm on Sunday 10^th March.

Manchester City, who won the FA Cup in 2011, have cruised through this season’s competition so far, scoring eight goals without reply. They began with a 3-0 Third Round win over Watford, followed by a Fourth Round 1-0 victory over Stoke, before a 4-0 stroll against Leeds in the Fifth Round last weekend. Opponents Barnsley have only conceded one goal themselves – in the 3-1 success against MK Dons to earn their quarter-final spot, which followed 1-0 wins against Burnley and Hull. Under pressure boss Roberto Mancini would welcome a similar result as he seeks to ensure some silverware for his club this season. Barnsley will look to forward Chris Dagnall to continue the FA Cup scoring form that his seen him net three times in this year’s competition.

ESPN’s second exclusively live FA Cup Sixth Round game airs on Sunday 10^th March, features two sides separated by just three points in the nPower Championship. Millwall knocked out struggling Aston Villa at the New Den in the Fourth Round, alongside their dismissals of Preston in the Third Round, and non-league Luton in the Fifth. Blackburn made it past fellow Championship clubs Bristol City and Derby with little fuss, before pulling off one of the biggest shocks of the competition so far, beating Arsenal 1-0 at the Emirates last weekend. Millwall and Blackburn’s only meeting in the league so far this season was a 2-0 away win for The Lions.

Simon Potter, head of programming and production, ESPN, EMEA, said: “We’re looking forward to bringing fans the drama and FA Cup ties storylines to fans. Barnsley will be looking to pull off perhaps the biggest shock in this season’s competition. Meanwhile Millwall and Blackburn will relish the prospect of not facing a Barclays Premier League side in their quest to reach the semi-finals.”

FA CUP ON ESPN

ESPN will broadcast 25 live and exclusive FA Cup matches this season, from the First Round through to the Final, ensuring fans won’t miss any of the competition’s unique drama and storylines. As well as selected replays through the tournament, the sports media company televises two matches in the first two rounds, three matches from the third to fifth rounds, two quarter-finals, one semi-final and the FA Cup Final. ESPN Classic will feature an extensive programming line-up of great FA Cup moments, airing on the channel every night in January.

ESPN.co.uk, ESPN’s news and information portal, offers football fans in the UK online coverage of the FA Cup including special features. ESPNFC.com, ESPN’s multi-platform, multi-language and multi-country global football brand, will provide live scores and match reports, plus access to a network of bloggers. Both sites will also offer video highlights of selected FA Cup matches. On mobile, fans can access all of the best content from ESPN.co.uk via the mobile web, and, from ESPNFC.com via a dedicated mobile app.