ESPN President Jimmy Pitaro hates it when the network he represents is referred to as the “Worldwide Leader in Sports.” He also hates it when everyone refers to ESPN as a “network” as well.
During a recent media day on their Bristol campus in which members of the press were invited to talk directly with ESPN’s kingpins, Pitaro told the reporters present that he doesn’t think “it’s representative of the culture here.” According to Sportico , he continued on saying “Others can refer to us as a leader. That’s great, and we take a lot of pride in leading, but referring to ourselves that way always felt a bit off.”
In a recent conversation with Puck’s John Ourand , Pitaro also emphasized the need to refer to ESPN as more than just a network because it is represented across multiple platforms beyond linear television. A rebranding and reimagining of how we all should perceive ESPN according to the company itself is currently taking place right before our eyes.
ESPN was originally known as the “Total Sports Cable Network” before adopting the moniker that has been used on signs during big games and even as a crossword puzzle clue. At one point, the network tried to augment their slogan saying they were “Serving sports fans” but nothing gels as well as “The Worldwide Leader.”
The play for humility makes a lot of sense. ESPN is facing the fiercest competition of its existence. Tech companies are buying into sports rights and have unlimited resources. Viewers are leaving the cable bundle in droves. The network is also in the works of launching the biggest and most important digital product in company history.
Reducing the hubris of a company that was once thought of to be Disney’s most valuable asset and maybe even more valuable than its own parent company is a safe play. It takes some attention off from the brand and it gives leadership at the company more leeway to do what works best for the company rather than what society may think is best for the sports industry as a whole. There is no “standard” for ESPN to live up to without the slogan.
What’s even more interesting and confusing though is that despite what they’re saying, if you look at the actions the company is taking, ESPN is actually still moving like the worldwide leader in sports.
Last March, CNBC reported that the network was exploring the ability to be a hub for live sporting events. They were speaking with leagues and other media partners and would help make ESPN the “TV guide of sports.” All of those talks have led to a new feature known as Where to Watch which allows users of the ESPN app to search for a sports event, find out the time it is happening, and the app a viewer can watch the event on. Users can search by team, by league or even by platform including the services ESPN directly competes against. They’ve decided to launch the service despite the fact that Apple Sports does the same thing and is being heavily amplified to iPhone users, the failure of the Buzzer app that tried to connect fans to last-minute moments happening during a game on various apps, and the fact that even Fox Sports’ app has been telling viewers where to watch games whether it was on a Fox platform or not for years.
ESPN is interested in connecting sports fans and keeping them engaged no matter where it leads them. This is the vision of a worldwide leader.
ESPN Bet has become a major part of the network’s identity. There isn’t a day that goes by without ESPN Bet branding on the air. It’s a product that has its own show on ESPN 2. Alternate sports broadcasts are powered by the gambling firm. Programming on the network has even originated from sports books that are ESPN Bet branded.
Right now, the brand only has a 3.2% market share compared to DraftKings at 38% and FanDuel at 36%. It has also been criticized live on ESPN’s air in an embarrassing but truthful way . The fact that ESPN is even involved is a recognition that gambling is extremely important to the viewers is a serious shift from years of previous rhetoric. ESPN Bet will reportedly be integrated into the network’s direct-to-consumer service set to launch next year. These aren’t timid, humble moves in trying to upend the DraftKings-FanDuel duopoly.
ESPN has recognized fans like to play games of their own for a long time. They’ve dominated the fantasy arena and have an app specifically dedicated to fantasy sports that was ranked number one among iPhone users on Wednesday night as users finish drafting their fantasy teams before the NFL season begins. They even dominated the digital side of the sports space during the Olympics despite not having any rights to any events. Their social content produced 92 percent more engagement than NBC’s content and the ESPN app was number one in July reaching 21 million unique users, according to the Worldwide Leader.
ESPN is even playing a role in potentially saving TNT Sports after they lost rights to the NBA. After renewing their deal with the College Football Playoff, ESPN decided to sublicense two of their playoff games to TNT. Their parent company is using these games to give cable operators a reason to continue paying them $3 a month per customer for TNT. Because of the vast amount of rights that ESPN owns, it isn’t uncommon to find the network sublicensing its own rights to rivals, indirectly helping a partner gain more exposure , or grabbing sublicensing rights just in case it ever needs to use them like it did when renewing its rights to air the US Open recently .
While negotiating many of these rights agreements, the network has always ensured that in addition to gaining domestic rights they also grab some international rights as well. The latest NBA deal includes rights in select markets where Disney+ is a sports juggernaut and their ongoing NFL deal includes the right to broadcast the Super Bowl every year in Australia . Yes folks, we’re literally going overseas to prove a point.
ESPN hasn’t even been scared of pursuing partnerships with their rivals. The infamous Venu Sports is currently in the midst of a court battle but if launched could provide a unique, skinnier way for consumers to watch sports in partnership with Warner Bros. Discovery and Fox. During another era of ESPN, seeing competition on ESPN’s air would’ve been like seeing a ghost. Hearing about the network potentially teaming up with two rivals would’ve sounded almost too good to be true. But in 2024, the possibilities are endless, the stakes are higher and the mission to remain atop the sports television industry trumps everything else.
When you read about all of these strategic moves, you can’t help but to question how ESPN’s diplomacy doesn’t prove now more than ever that they’re trying to maintain their place as the worldwide leader in sports. A network that has had conversations with sports leagues about potentially acquiring a minority stake shouldn’t shy away from the identity it has built over decades and is continuing to live up to even in the social media age. The network may be the number one overall media brand on TikTok but it’ll never be able to shed the image of being a reliable sports brand and it shouldn’t try to do so at all.
ESPN needs to carry itself with the bravado of their number one star Stephen A. Smith even if they don’t have 90 million subscribers and the billions of dollars in subscription fees that they used to garner. They’re still the top dog and will be for at least the next ten years. ESPN is and most likely will always be the Worldwide Leader in Sports. With challenges ahead, it’s time to embrace it, not run from it.
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