ESPN UK
| BT Sport ESPN | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Launched | 3 August 2009 |
| Owned by |
BT Group (branding licensed from ESPN Inc.) |
| Picture format |
576i (SDTV 16:9) 1080i (HDTV 16:9) |
| Audience share | 0.03% (September 2015, BARB) |
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Broadcast area | United Kingdom Ireland |
| Formerly called | ESPN (2009–15) |
| Sister channel(s) |
BT Sport 1 BT Sport 2 BT Sport 3 |
|
Availability
|
|
| Satellite | |
| Sky | Channel 426 Channel 458 (HD) |
| Cable | |
| Virgin Media | Channel 530 (HD) Channel 534 |
| IPTV | |
| BT | Channel 411 Channel 434 (HD) |
| Plusnet | Channel 411 Channel 434 (HD) |
| TalkTalk TV | Channel 411 |
| Streaming media | |
| BT Sport Player | Watch live (UK only) |
| Virgin TV Anywhere | Watch live (UK only) |
BT Sport ESPN is a sports television channel provided by BT Consumer; a division of BT Group in the United Kingdom and Ireland, under licence from American sports broadcaster ESPN Inc. The channel was operated by ESPN from 3 August 2009 to 31 July 2013, when it was sold to BT and became part of its BT Sport package. The channel focusses on coverage of American sports, in particular Major League Baseball and American College sports, but BT also uses it to show European sport when BT Sport 1, 2 & 3 are otherwise engaged. Programming is available in standard definition and high definition formats.
The channel launched on 3 August 2009 following ESPN's acquisition of partial UK broadcast rights to the Premier League six weeks prior, caused in turn by the financial difficulties of Setanta Sports, which ceased broadcasting in Great Britain at about the same time. It marked ESPN's first foray into live coverage of domestic sports events in the UK. Prior to August 2009, ESPN's only operations in the UK were archive sports channel ESPN Classic, as well as the pan-European ESPN America channel, which focused on North American sport.
On 13 June 2012, it was announced that ESPN had missed out on Premier League broadcast rights from the 2013-14 to 2015-16 season to Sky Sports and BT, despite making a "strong bid". The news followed speculation that ESPN was reconsidering its position in the UK. In the following months, ESPN also lost the rights to Premiership Rugby, Premiership Rugby Sevens Series and American, Brazilian, French and Italian top-flight football to BT. On 1 February 2013, Broadcast reported that ESPN had entered talks to sell off its remaining sports rights, believed to be worth more than £15m. During The Walt Disney Company's first quarter earnings results conference call on 5 February 2013, Disney's chief financial officer Jay Rasulo confirmed that ESPN had "experienced losses" in the UK and was "exploring an exit". On 25 February 2013, BT agreed to acquire ESPN's UK and Ireland TV channels business, consisting of ESPN and ESPN America. BT continue to broadcast ESPN since the deal's completion date of 31 July, as part of its BT Sport package of services. The value of the deal had not been disclosed, but BT was understood to be paying "low tens of millions".
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