ESPN Extends Partnership With Sony’s Beyond Sports To Expand Animated Alternate Telecasts
Under the new deal, ESPN will produce four animated telecasts during the 2025–26 season; additional projects planned for 2026–27
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ESPN is deepening its collaboration with Sony’s Beyond Sports, extending a partnership that has powered the network’s growing slate of animated alternate telecasts. Under the new deal, ESPN will produce four animated telecasts during the 2025–26 season, with additional projects planned for 2026–27.
The relationship among ESPN, Beyond Sports, and Sony’s Hawk-Eye Innovations has produced a series of alternate broadcasts that convert live sports action into real-time animation using Disney’s library of intellectual property. The concept debuted in 2023 and has since expanded to multiple leagues, including the NFL, NHL, NBA, and WNBA.
“At ESPN, innovation has always been a driver in serving sports fans, including reaching new audiences,” Kevin Lopes, Vice President, Sports Business Development & Innovation, ESPN said in an official release from the network. “Sony’s Beyond Sports and their team have helped fuel our animated alternate casts, along with our league partners, creating an entirely new way for fans to consume our content. We look forward to continuing to produce these unique experiences for fans both this year and in the years ahead.”
Sander J. Schouten, Managing Director and Co-Founder of Beyond Sports, added in the release, “The addition of four new telecasts this season will bring our total with ESPN to nine — a reflection of how this partnership continues to grow year on year. Enabled by our technology, together we’re driving the evolution of fan engagement, creating new ways for fans to experience the game and redefining live sports storytelling.”
The collaboration began with the NHL Big City Greens Classic in 2023, followed by NFL’s Funday Football specials, which leveraged the league’s Next Gen Stats and Disney’s Toy Story and Simpsons IP. The NBA’s Dunk the Halls and a second Big City Greens Classic in 2024 further demonstrated the format’s versatility across sports.
ESPN research has shown that these animated telecasts attract new and younger audiences, often fostering co-viewing between parents and children. Many non-sports fans have also engaged with the broadcasts, drawn by the entertainment factor and familiar Disney characters.
Alternate telecasts are a long-standing part of ESPN’s production DNA. The company has experimented with secondary viewing options for more than two decades, most notably through its MegaCast format, launched in 2014, and Monday Night Football with Peyton and Eli, now in its fifth season.
