North American Sports Network, a cable/satellite channel that televises North American sports throughout Europe and the Middle East, will be rebranded as ESPN America, beginning Super Bowl Sunday, 2009.
The network features Major League Baseball, National Basketball Association, National Football League and National Hockey League telecasts, as well as ESPN programming such as Pardon the Interruption, Around the Horn and Baseball Tonight.
Since ESPN acquired the network in 2007, it has expanded its reach to 14 million households in 43 countries, with another 3 million in the Middle East
“The announcement of our first ESPN-branded live television channel in Europe is a momentous day for the company,” said Lynne Frank, Senior Vice President and Managing Director of ESPN in Europe, Middle East, and Africa, in a statement. “ESPN America’s programming lineup is unparalleled in the region, and will serve fans of North American sports throughout Europe and the Middle East. Our business continues to grow. ESPN America will sit alongside ESPN Classic, and our digital properties, ESPN360.com, ESPNSoccernet, Cricinfo, ESPNScrum.com and Racing-live.com.”
