In a transfer that dramatically shakes up the sports activities TV panorama, ESPN and Main League Baseball have determined to half methods after the upcoming MLB season, ending a 35-year relationship between the sports activities TV big and league, and bringing some prime sports activities rights to the market.
“We’re grateful for our longstanding relationship with Main League Baseball and pleased with how ESPN’s protection super-serves followers,” an ESPN spokesperson tells The Hollywood Reporter. “In making this resolution, we utilized the identical self-discipline and monetary duty that has constructed ESPN’s industry-leading reside occasions portfolio as we proceed to develop our viewers throughout linear, digital and social platforms. As we’ve got been all through the method, we stay open to exploring new methods to serve MLB followers throughout our platforms past 2025.”
One other supply described the choice as “mutual,” with the league seemingly completely satisfied to check the marketplace for a few of its Most worthy rights.
As alluded to within the ESPN assertion, the choice comes at a pivotal second for the Disney-owned sports activities big, which is getting ready to launch a brand new streaming service this yr with all of its reside programming, together with MLB video games.
Sources advised THR final summer season that ESPN was more likely to choose out of its MLB deal when the window opened this yr, given the price of the rights, although ESPN executives additionally expressed curiosity in pursuing offers with regional sports activities networks to bundle these with its streaming providing.
ESPN has been inking offers for rights that it deems important, like final yr’s huge NBA contract, or the take care of NCAA that features girls’s March Insanity, nevertheless it has additionally been prepared to let main rights go, like MLB and Huge Ten.