ESPN

First Two Rounds on ESPN Were Most-Viewed in Eight Years

June 17, 2008 -- ESPN’s coverage of the 2008 U.S. Open playoff on Monday from noon-2 p.m. ET was the most-viewed golf telecast in cable TV history (4.2 household rating, 4,055,000 household impressions, 4,762,000 viewers). Tiger Woods defeated Rocco Mediate in a sudden playoff at Torrey Pines. ESPN aired the first two hours of the playoff, which went into sudden death. Previously, ESPN’s coverage of the 2008 Masters, which delivered a 3.1 household rating, held the record, averaging 3,014,000 households.    » read more »

June 3, 2008 -- Several college football matchups have been determined involving SEC and ACC teams for telecasts in 2008 on ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU and ESPN360.com. Highlights include:

* Saturday Night Football on ABC, the first weekly college football primetime series on broadcast television, will kick off its third season with Alabama vs. Clemson at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta on August 30 at 8 p.m. ET. The showdown between SEC and ACC power programs will mark the first meeting between the schools since 1975. Another Saturday Night Football telecast will pit defending SEC East Champion Georgia at Arizona State, coming off a 10-3 season and a Holiday Bowl appearance, on September 20 at 8 p.m.    » read more »

June 3, 2008 -- ESPN’s NBA coverage has generated audience growth across the company’s multimedia platforms, including significant improvements in television viewership and online traffic during the NBA Playoffs.

ESPN – NBA Playoffs through Eastern Conference Finals

* ESPN’s coverage of the 2008 NBA Playoffs ranks as the network’s most-viewed ever (3,149,000 households; previous high – 2,994,000 households in 2006);
* The 3,149,000 households for 21 telecasts marks an increase of 41 percent when compared to 2,239,000 households last year (17 telecasts);
* The corresponding 3.3 rating is up 38 percent over the 2.4 rating in 2007.

ABC – NBA Playoffs through Eastern Conference Finals    » read more »

SportsCenter NBA Finals Special – 1987 Celtics/Lakers – Tuesday on ESPN

June 2, 2008 -- The 2008 NBA Finals, featuring the Los Angeles Lakers and Kobe Bryant and the Boston Celtics and Kevin Garnett, will tip off on Thursday, June 5, at 9 p.m. ET on ABC, ABC HD, ESPN Radio and ESPN International.

ESPN’s multi-platform presentation of The Finals will include coverage across ABC, ABC HD, ESPN, ESPN HD, ESPN2, ESPN2 HD, ESPN Radio, ESPN International, ESPNEWS, ESPNEWS HD, ESPN.com, ESPN Deportes, ESPN Deportes Radio, ESPNdeportes.com, ESPN Classic, ESPN360.com, ESPN The Magazine and ESPN Mobile Properties.

ABC’s primetime lineup will include:    » read more »

June 2, 2008 -- In order to better reflect the ever-increasing global presence of the X Games franchise, ESPN has renamed and reorganized the department that now oversees more than a dozen events, qualifiers, exhibits and competitions annually. The Global X Events and Development department will focus exclusively on the continued global expansion of X Games events and related opportunities tied to the franchise.    » read more »

June 2, 2008 -- The familiar trio of Mike Greenberg, Mike Golic and Pro Football Hall of Famer Mike Ditka will call the West Coast game for the second consecutive year in ESPN’s season-opening Monday Night Football doubleheader -- Denver Broncos vs. Oakland Raiders on September 8 at 10:15 p.m. ET. The game will follow the Minnesota Vikings vs. Green Bay Packers telecast at 7 p.m.    » read more »

Big Brown Seeks First Triple Crown Since 1978; ESPN to Offer Extensive Multimedia Coverage

June 2, 2008 -- ESPN will offer seven hours of coverage leading to ABC’s two-hour race broadcast Sat., June 5, as Big Brown attempts to win the 140th Belmont Stakes and become the first horse to capture the Triple Crown since 1978. ESPN will have programming from noon to 5 p.m. ET , followed by the race coverage on ABC. All Belmont programming on ABC and ESPN will be aired in high definition television on ABC HD and ESPN HD, respectively.

Overall, ESPN will provide Belmont Stakes coverage on nine platforms: ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN Radio, ESPN.com, ESPN Deportes, ESPN360.com, ESPN International, and ESPN Mobile TV.    » read more »

- Marks The First Time Breeders’ Cup Will Be Televised on ABC
- Nine Hours of Live Event Coverage to Air Over Two Days on ABC, ESPN and ESPN2

June 2, 2008 -- The Breeders’ Cup and ESPN announced today that the 2008 Breeders’ Cup World Championships on October 24-25 from Santa Anita Park will receive an unprecedented nine hours of live coverage including, for the first time, 2.5 hours of live coverage on ABC. The 25th running of the Breeders’ Cup will feature 14 races over two days with record purses of $25.5 million and air on ABC, ESPN and ESPN2 beginning on Friday, October 24 on ESPN2. The ABC and ESPN combination marks the first ever network and cable telecast of the Championships.    » read more »

Coverage Begins May 29

May 27, 2008 -- ESPN’s coverage of the entire Women’s College World Series – up to 17 games on ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPN360.com beginning Thursday, May 29 – will feature ESPN’s John Kruk as a game analyst on 10 games, including the best-of-three Championship. Kruk, an analyst on ESPN’s Baseball Tonight studio show and select MLB games, will work with Beth Mowins and analyst Jessica Mendoza, a 2004 Olympic Gold Medalist and member of the U.S. team headed for the 2008 Olympics in Beijing.    » read more »

Premier International Action Sports Event Will Return To Sao Paulo

May 15, 2008 -- Based on the great success of the first edition of X Games Brazil, ESPN and event partner ReUnion Sports & Marketing have agreed to host the event for a second consecutive year in 2009. More than 43,000 people gathered at the Sambodromo do Anhembi, for the first ever ESPN X Games Brazil in Sao Paulo.

ESPN produced 15 hours of original programming and a total of nine hours of live programming aired on Brazil’s two ESPN television networks, ESPN and ESPN Brazil. Complete coverage of the event was also provided on ESPN Brazil’s news and information programs, and live streaming video was featured on EXPN.com.    » read more »

Nationwide Search Underway to Determine America’s Top Championship City

May 19, 2008 -- A panel of 33 journalists from ESPN and across the country will pare down the list of nominations for ESPN’s SportsCenter “TitleTown USA” – an interactive and multimedia effort to determine which city, town or municipality will be declared America’s top championship city by fans this summer. The panel features 12 SportsCenter anchors and 21 accomplished media professionals from top daily newspapers and television outlets.    » read more »

Two Weeks of Action Highlighted by Women’s Semifinals Live June 5 and 250+ Live Hours on ESPN360.com

May 19, 2008 -- Tennis’ second Grand Slam of the year – Roland Garros, the 2008 French Open presented by Aviva – will begin on ESPN2 – the Grand Slam Network – on Sunday, May 25, and the network will present more than 51 hours from Paris, culminating with the women’s semifinals live Thursday, June 5. ESPN networks have televised the French Open 1986 – 1993 and since 2002. In addition, ESPN360.com will have more than 250 live hours of coverage, also starting on Sunday, May 25.    » read more »

Debut of No. 1 Draft Pick Candace Parker with the Los Angeles Sparks and Theme Song and Music Video by R&B Sensation Alicia Keys

March 13, 2008 -- ESPN2 will combine with ABC to televise 22 regular-season WNBA games, starting with the defending champion, Phoenix Mercury and Diana Taurasi, when they host the Los Angeles Sparks and No. 1 Draft pick Candace Parker from NCAA champion Tennessee Saturday, May 17, at 3:30 p.m. ET on ABC. For the first time, ABC will use SkyCam for a WNBA telecast -- showcasing the speed and talent of the top female players in the world.    » read more »

May 1, 2008 -- ESPN’s exclusive coverage of the 2008 World Series of Poker® Presented by Milwaukee’s Best Light will feature a new enhanced format for the Final Table. The final nine players of the Main Event (the $10,000 World Championship of No-Limit Texas Hold’em) will compete on November 9-10 instead of the originally scheduled date of July 16. ESPN will televise coverage of the Final Table in a two-hour program on Tuesday, Nov. 11, at 9 p.m. ET.

The innovative change – offering fans an enhanced way of following the excitement and drama of high-stakes tournament play -- was made in collaboration between the WSOP, the WSOP Players Advisory Council and ESPN.    » read more »

All soccer matches live and in High Definition; 29 Matches Simulcast live on ESPN360.com; All Matches on ESPN Deportes

May 8, 2008 -- For the first time, ESPN, Inc., will present exclusive live coverage of the UEFA European Football Championship 2008 Saturday, June 7, through Sunday, June 29, from eight cities in Austria and Switzerland.

ESPN2, ESPN, ESPN Classic and ABC will combine to present all 31 matches live – five on ESPN Classic, 17 on ESPN2 and seven on ESPN. ABC will broadcast two matches – a quarterfinal contest on June 21 and the Euro 2008 title match Sunday, June 29 at 2:30 p.m. ET from the Ernst-Happel-Stadion in Vienna, Austria.    » read more »