Details about the new service are scarce, but it appears that the service will bring together all of the sports content currently available on Warner Brothers Discovery (WBD), ESPN, and Fox's linear or streaming services. No name or pricing was revealed for the service scheduled to launch this fall. Each entity would own one-third of the joint venture.
An ESPN press release states: “The offering, expected to launch in the fall of 2024, will be made available directly to consumers via a new app. Subscribers will also have the option to bundle the product, including with Disney+, Hulu and/or Max“. The same press release also reveals that UCI Mountain Bike World Cup coverage will be included in the new service along with the NFL, NBA, Formula 1 and other major sporting events. By subscribing to this all-in-one sports service, fans will have access to ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, SECN, ACCN, ESPNEWS, ABC, FOX, FS1, FS2, BTN, TNT, TBS, truTV and ESPN+.
This news follows the launch of a new $9,99 add-on for WBD's MAX streaming service that will be needed to watch this year's World Cup following the shutdown of GCN+ last year.
The launch of this new sports streaming service represents a significant moment for Disney and ESPN, a big win for sports fans and a major step forward for the media business. This means the full suite of ESPN channels will be available to consumers alongside sports programming from other industry leaders as part of a differentiated, sports-focused service. I am grateful to Jimmy Pitaro and the team at ESPN, who are at the forefront of innovating on behalf of consumers to create new offerings with more choice and greater value – Bob Iger, CEO of The Walt Disney Company
We are excited to bring the FOX Sports portfolio to this exciting new platform. We believe the service will provide passionate fans, in addition to the traditional package, a series of great sports content in one place – Lachlan Murdoch, executive chairman and CEO of FOX
At WBD, our ambition is always to connect our core content and brands with as many viewers as possible, and this exciting joint venture and unrivaled combination of sports rights and access to the world's biggest sporting events allows us to do just that. This new sports service exemplifies our ability as an industry to drive innovation and offer consumers more choice, entertainment and value and we are excited to bring it to sports fans – David Zaslav, CEO of Warner Bros. Discovery
We will see in the future if there will be any tangible changes in Europe after this news.
