ESPN+ will be the exclusive English-language home of soccer’s 46th CONMEBOL Copa America, which will unfold in Brazil between June 14-July 7. The entire 26-match tournament will be carried on the subscription streaming service in English as well as in Portugese. The first Copa America event was held in 1916, 14 years…

The results are in for the 40th annual Sports Emmy Awards. ESPN and NBC tied for the most trophies with six apiece, and their respective network groups also played to a draw with eight each. The hardware was handed out tonight during a special ceremony at Frederick P. Rose Hall in Manhattan. TNT was third with five…

UPDATED with wrap-up: The first Walt Disney Company Upfront Presentation offered a newly bulked-up media company flexing its Madison Avenue muscle at at David Geffen Hall at Lincoln Center. The first upfront since Disney’s merger with most of 21st Century Fox showcase all of its ad-supported brands: ABC, ESPN, Freeform…

Longtime ESPN host Bob Ley is indefinitely extending his leave of absence from the network and from Outside the Lines. ESPN addressed the issue Monday in a statement to USA Today. "Bob Ley has decided to extend his time away from Outside the Lines. We look forward to Bob's return when he will add to his unprecedented…

The XFL, which has been resurrected by WWE chief Vince McMahon as a bid to satisfy year-round viewer appetite for football, has announced multi-year deals with ESPN and FOX Sports to televise games in its inaugural 2020 season. Games will have broadcast slots each weekend on ABC and Fox, with carriage on cable via…

ESPN and ABC's coverage of the 2019 NBA Conference Semifinals is up 19 percent from last season in metered market ratings, according to Nielsen. Through five games, ESPN and ABC are averaging a 3.8 metered market rating. ESPN's coverage of Friday's quadruple overtime game, in which the Portland Trail Blazers defeated…

DAZN, the rising sports streaming operation headed by former ESPN chief John Skipper, has added a key exec from Skipper’s former regime, bringing in Jamie Horowitz as EVP of content for North America. Horowitz had been a consultant at DAZN since 2018. He was fired by Fox Sports in 2017 amid an investigation by the…

Gary Lang, a sports television producer whose career included stints at CBS Sports, ESPN and, most prolifically, Fox Sports, died April 21 after a brief illness at his home in Redondo Beach, California. He was 53. His death was announced by family friend Frank Marchesini, VP, Entertainment Public Relations, Showtime…

For its upcoming 50th anniversary season, ESPN’s Monday Night Football will bring back play-by-play voice Joe Tessitore and analyst Booger McFarland in the booth. Lisa Salters will remain a sideline reporter, and John Parry joins as a new officiating analyst. Gone will be McFarland’s controversial 12-foot crane, from…

ESPN has arrived at the same conclusion as many other magazine publishers in a challenged marketplace, deciding to halt publication of its monthly print edition in September after a 21-year run. The Disney unit did not rule out the possibility of putting out themed print issues in the future, but is moving away from…

DEVELOPING …"Today's presentation will show you where we're going, but also remind you that we are starting from a position of strength and optimism," Bob Iger announced at today’s Disney Investor Day on the 96-year old company's Burbank lot. "This is the first time that we've met with you since the Fox deal closed…

In a keynote conversation at the NAB Show in Las Vegas, Department of Justice antitrust chief Makan Delrahim pointed to a carriage impasse between the UFC and DirecTV as proof of AT&T’s monopoly power now that it owns WarnerMedia. Last month, ESPN signed an expanded deal with the UFC that makes the streaming platform…