LaLiga and ESPN Strike an eight-season Deal to Air Spanish Soccer to North America
Spanish soccer fans in the United States will be delighted with the news that they will be able to enjoy hundreds of live matches across LaLiga Santander and SmartBank leagues. This comes after a long-term deal is sealed between ESPN and LaLiga. The agreement is expected to run for the next eight seasons.
Starting August, live matches from these leagues will be available every year exclusively on ESPN+. Currently, ESPN is home to several Spanish football games, including Spanish Copa del Rey, Supercopa de Espana, and Copa de la Reina.
The first division Spanish league, LaLiga Santander, is one of the world’s top-notch leagues. It features 20 clubs, including the world’s best teams with the likes of Real Madrid, FC Barcelona, Atletico Madrid, and Sevilla FC, etc.
Following the contract terms, ESPN+ will stream live Spanish games from the leagues mentioned above and carry out on-demand replay coverage of the LaLiga Santander (380) matches every season. Additionally, it will also live stream selected matches from the LaLiga SmartBank league every season. This will include the five postseason playoffs as teams seek to advance to the next league. All games aired will be available in two languages, English and Spanish.
Besides live matches, ESPN+ will entertain its audience with match previews, magazine shows, highlights. At the same time, it will also cover LaLiga expansively on other signature shows such as Jorge Ramos y Su Banda, ESPN FC, and Fuera de Juego.
ESPN’s Programming & Original Content Executive Vice President, Burke Magnus, indicated that the contract would bring to light the excitement, iconic clubs, passion, and global soccer superstars of LaLiga to delight US sports fans with unique access and coverage.
He also added that as the world of soccer continues to gain recognition in the US market. ESPN is excited to work closely with LaLiga to create a deeper connection with American fans through the company’s sophisticated live streaming platforms, digital and social media assets, and television networks.
Javier Tebas, LaLiga President, indicated that they are more than happy to introduce LaLiga on ESPN in the US market. He added that the move is a historic eight-season agreement that shows the power of LaLiga and the clubs involved and that the long-term deal will bring the world’s best soccer to the American fans in a more comprehensive and contemporary way than ever before.
The Executive Vice President and GM, ESPN+, Russel Wolf, asserted that the eight-season contract creates a home for LaLiga among US fans for years and that it cements ESPN+ as an ideal platform for the world’s best soccer watches. He noted that the company is eager to showcase LaLiga’s brilliance in English and Spanish coverages.
The deal also entails certain rights for Canada. RDS and TSN, Canada’s best sports networks, will deliver wide-ranging coverage of LaLiga games, highlights, and other sports news in the league to Canadian audiences through multiple platforms such as live streaming on RDS.ca TSN.ca, and the RDS and TSN apps.
The CEO of North America, LaLiga, Boris Gartner, stated that working with ESPN will allow LaLiga to have comprehensive LaLiga programming across ESPN+, digital platforms, and ESPN’s network. He added that this would excite fans and introduce them to the passion and drama of LaLiga. This means that the league and the respective clubs, including the highly admired players, will be close to the US fans more than ever before.
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