Disney's ESPN and NCAA Reach a NEW Eight-Year Agreement

As you may know, ESPN is owned by Disney.

ESPN Wide World of Sports

That’s why you can visit the ESPN Wide World of Sports in Disney World, and some streaming packages bundle Disney+ with ESPN+. There were rumors that Disney may sell ESPN, but in a new update, ESPN has reached an eight-year agreement with the NCAA.

According to The Walt Disney Company, ESPN and the NCAA have reached a new 8-year agreement that will begin on September 1st, 2024. This will give ESPN “domestic rights to a record 40 NCAA championships – 21 women’s and 19 men’s events – and international rights to those same NCAA championships plus the Division I men’s basketball tournament.”

©Disney

ESPN Chairman Jimmy Pitaro said that this deal “further strengthens The Walt Disney Company’s industry-leading commitment to women’s sports and will help fuel our continued growth, including in the critical streaming space.”

©ESPN

This new deal will continue coverage of everything previously included — all rounds of marquee NCAA Championship events — and will add coverage of the Division I men’s and women’s tennis team championships and the national collegiate men’s gymnastics championship.

©Disney

So, what does Bog Iger have to do with this? Well, Iger has previously talked about his #1 priority as the CEO of the Walt Disney Company, with plans to increase the profitability and growth of Disney’s streaming content.

©Disney

This decision to sign an agreement for the next eight years is unprecedented, given that audiences’ streaming preferences can change so quickly. That said, sports coverage has been in demand for a while, so it’s likely Iger felt it was a worthy investment to strengthen ESPN’s content library.