ESPN Deportes 2015 Upfront

ESPN Deportes announced at its Upfront in New York City today new initiatives focused on strengthening the network’s digital video offerings, original content lineup and diverse programming. Special guests included Spanish soccer star David Villa, who recently debuted with MLS’s newest team New York City FC,  and ESPN Deportes’ on air commentators including Hugo Sanchez, Alejandro Moreno, Antonietta Collins, Alfredo Lomeli and recent Sports Emmy-award winner Ernesto Jerez.  The presentation emphasized the importance of multimedia, multiplatform content and live programming to engage and reach the avid Hispanic sport fans, underscoring their power and relevance in sports consumption. The network’s success in delivering the most diverse sports programming will be the groundwork for the brand’s focus on live, diverse programming in 2016, highlighted by the return of the UEFA European Championship.

LIVE SPORTS PROGRAMMING

In the last year, ESPN Deportes has aired more live programming every week than any other Spanish-language sports network (18 percent more than the closest competitor), while also delivering its most-viewed MLB, NBA, NFL and College Football seasons ever.

In 2016, the brand will continue to deliver an unmatched lineup of live sports events including MLB, Monday Night Football, NFL Wildcard, NBA (including The Finals), College Football Playoff, UEFA Champions League (including the final), UEFA Super Cup, UEFA Europa League (including the final), La Liga’s Copa del Rey Final and Supercopa, select European FIFA World Cup qualifying matches, and the most anticipated soccer event of the year, the 2016 UEFA European Championship.

2016 UEFA European Championship

With European nations taking four of the last five World Cups and thirteen spots out of the top twenty FIFA rankings, UEFA Euro 2016 promises to be the most popular and followed soccer tournament next year.  ESPN and ESPN Deportes have been the exclusive home of the tournament since 2008. In 2012, the Euro Final was not only the single most-watched event for ESPN Deportes but also drove the network to become the most-watched cable network by Hispanic men throughout the tournament – Spanish and English.

The UEFA Euro 2016 will be held in France from June 10 – July 10, introducing a new format that expands the number of participating countries to 24 teams competing in a group stage consisting of six groups of four teams, followed by a knockout stage that includes three rounds and the final.

ESPN will present more coverage than ever before with more than 400 hours of coverage across ESPN, ESPN 2, ESPN Deportes, ESPN Deportes Radio and ESPN Radio, including live broadcast of all 51 matches. In addition, ESPNDeportes.com <http://ESPNDeportes.com> , ESPN FC and ESPN’s app will provide 24/7 coverage. The brand will deploy the largest production team and on-air talent roster with presence in six major cities, including Paris, Lyon, Bordeaux, Toulouse, Nice and Marseille. To complement the telecast of each match, ESPN Deportes will also develop a unique lineup of the brand’s most renowned news and information programming and original content featuring some of the most compelling stories in the world of soccer.

Boxing

Starting this summer, Noche de Combates, the network’s boxing program will be enhanced with top-level fights featuring Premier Boxing Champions (PBC), a series created for television by Haymon Boxing, presenting some of today’s best and brightest stars in their toughest, most anticipated bouts. The first of twelve two-hour annual live telecasts – also in English as part of Premier Boxing Champions on ESPN (PBC on ESPN) – is scheduled for Saturday, July 11, at 9 p.m. ET on ESPN and ESPN Deportes.
 
ESPN DEPORTES ON DISH NETWORK’S SLING TV

As part of ESPN’s initial agreement with DISH, ESPN Deportes will launch soon on Sling TV as part of the “Deportes Extra” add-on package.  For an additional $5 per month, customers who choose to supplement the “Best of Live TV” core package with “Deportes Extra” will be able to receive live access to ESPN Deportes.

Sling TV delivers live sports, lifestyle, family, news and information channels, and Video-On-Demand entertainment to broadband-connected devices at home and on-the-go. It is available on televisions, tablets, computers and smartphones.

ESPN DEPORTES DIGITAL

ESPN Deportes Quick Hits, a new short-form video collection
In 2014 alone, Hispanic men 18-49 consumed 6.7 billion minutes of video across ESPN’s digital properties presenting a unique opportunity for brands. In an effort to continue delivering content where fans are consuming, ESPN Deportes launches Quick Hits, a collection of short-form digital videos curated by fan favorites. The series not only enhances ESPN and ESPN Deportes’ Hispanic digital content offerings, but also provides brands with a unique opportunity to connect with fans by developing creative and innovative content that will be seamlessly integrated into Quick Hits.
 
The debut collection will include five series:

–         SportsCenter Ahora, featuring highlights of the most important plays of the day.

–         Pitazo Final, all the soccer analysis from ESPN Deportes’ experts

–         ESPiaNdo, delivering the best moments and analysis of American sports, including NBA, NFL, MLB and college sports

–         Instaviral, highlighting trends in the sports world

–         One Nacion, a series on the recently launched One Nación <http://www.espn.com/onenacion> , a bilingual online destination that integrates ESPN content relevant to the U.S. Hispanic sports fan, serving as a hub for English and Spanish-language content. The video series is co-hosted by Toni Collins and Alfredo Lomeli, presenting video segments that highlight the latest hot button topics relevant to the bicultural, bilingual audience. All segments are presented in a mix of both languages.
 
UNVEILING STATE-OF-THE-ART STUDIOS

During the Upfront event, the presentation highlighted the significance and power of production technology and ESPN Deportes’ commitment to expansion and enhancement of its studio capabilities in Bristol, Los Angeles, Miami and Mexico City, which will be opening it its new facilities later this year.
 
ESPN Deportes’ four studio locations offer advertisers the most advance technology to integrate their brand and messages. The new state-of-the-art ESPN facility in Mexico City will support 24/7 programming and includes four new HD studios, four control rooms and ten editing suites. These enhancements will create a dynamic environment that enables virtual brand integrations, set take overs and much more, presenting a unique opportunity to get innovative and incorporate the advertiser’s own stories into the programs.
 
MORE ORIGINAL CONTENT

ESPN Deportes will also debut a series of original short films this October with the premiere of a 30 for 30 film that recounts the life of Teofilo Stevenson, one of the greatest amateurs in boxing history.
 
In 1962, Castro gave Cuban boxers a choice–stay in Cuba and fight for national glory or defect to a country where they might become rich. Teofilo Stevenson chose to stay and fight for Cuba, where he won three Olympic gold medals and became a national hero.  American fight promoters offered him millions to challenge world heavyweight champion, Muhammad Ali, but Stevenson would have had to defect to take the fight, but he refused, asking:  “What is one million dollars compared to the love of eight million Cubans?”
 
Many boxing fans call the Ali-Stevenson fight the ‘great fight that never was’ and until his death in La Havana, Cuba at the age of sixty on June 11, 2012, Stevenson remained a staunch supporter of Castro and his Revolution. Teofilo Stevenson’s story is told through the lens of Cuban-American politics and examines how Stevenson’s life and the life of the Cuban people were dramatically altered by the embargo; and, wonder who would have won in an Ali-Stevenson match in a world without the embargo.
                        
ESPN DEPORTES RADIO

ESPN Deportes Radio, the only Spanish-language sports radio network dedicated to sports 24/7 will continue delivering the most comprehensive lineup of events in Spanish-language U.S. media. Over the next year, the radio network will present over 350 live events including UEFA Champions League, Liga MX, Copa MX, Copa Del Rey Final, Spanish Super Copa, UEFA Europa League, EURO 2016, UEFA World Cup Qualifying, CONCACAF Olympic qualifying, CONCACAF Champions League, MLS, International Champions Cup (ICC), MLB (including the Home Run Derby, All-Star Game and World Series), College Football Championship and Serie del Caribe.
 
ESPN DEPORTES LA REVISTA EXPANDS EDITORIAL OFFERINGS

Starting this fall, ESPN Deportes La Revista will expand its editorial offerings by adding Hombre ESPN, a new section dedicated to fashion, lifestyle and culture of the Hispanic athlete, featuring articles, interviews, trends and travel. Hombre ESPN will debut in the August/September issue.
impreMedia, one of the leading Hispanic news and information companies in the U.S., continues to publish ESPN Deportes La Revista. The magazine publishes six issues per year and is distributed in the top Hispanic DMAs through a matrix structure that includes single copy sales/newsstands and newspaper delivery.