ESPN Australia
| Company type | Subsidiary |
|---|---|
| Industry | Sports broadcasting |
| Founded | April 1999 |
| Headquarters | Australia |
Area served | Australia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, Pacific Islands |
| Parent | ESPN (The Walt Disney Company) |
| Website | espn |
ESPN Australia operates as the Australian branch of ESPN, which is part of the broader ESPN International network. Its broadcast region includes Australia, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea, and the Pacific Islands.
It stands among the few Disney-owned traditional television channels still active in Oceania, alongside Baby TV, following the discontinuation of Disney Channel, Disney Junior, Nat Geo Wild, and National Geographic. These closures were part of a strategic shift toward streaming content through Disney+.
History
The channel initially debuted as Sports ESPN on Optus Vision, primarily showcasing American sports such as American football, baseball, and basketball. To attract a wider audience, its programming later expanded to include soccer competitions like the FA Cup, qualifiers for the World Cup, and Major League Soccer, along with rugby and other sporting events.
ESPN became accessible on Austar in April 1999 and was added to Foxtel's lineup in September 2002.
A significant viewership record was set on 15 September 2015 when Jarryd Hayne’s NFL debut with the San Francisco 49ers drew 116,000 viewers, surpassing the previous high of 107,100 during Super Bowl XLVIII in 2014.
On 1 March 2011, ESPN2 launched in Australia, available in both standard and high definition. Later, ESPN HD was introduced to Fetch TV subscribers on 14 February 2017.
On 26 March 2025, ESPN was incorporated into the ESPN hub within the streaming service Disney+.
Content
ESPN Australia develops locally produced shows, including Australian adaptations of PTI and SportsCenter. Additionally, it broadcasts a weekday soccer analysis program titled ESPNsoccernet PressPass, hosted by Andrew Orsatti.
The ESPN channels showcase a variety of sports content, with certain broadcasts exclusive to ESPN or ESPN2:
American Football
- Coverage of the National Football League encompassing events like the NFL Draft, weekly games including Sunday Night Football, Monday Night Football, and Thursday Night Football, multiple Sunday matchups, all games from the NFL Network, special occasions such as Thanksgiving Day games, access to NFL RedZone, plus the Pro Bowl, Playoffs, and the annual Super Bowl
- Extensive college football coverage featuring regular season games, the prestigious Heisman Trophy presentation, the College Football Playoff, and Championship Game
Baseball
- Programming centered on Major League Baseball including weekly night fixtures, MLB Strike Zone segments, the annual Home Run Derby, the All-Star Game, postseason playoffs, and the culminating World Series
- College-level baseball competitions
- The annual Little League World Series
- The international tournament known as the World Baseball Classic
Basketball
- Comprehensive coverage of the National Basketball Association such as the draft event, All-Star Weekend festivities, midweek and weekend matches broadcast on ESPN/ABC/TNT, playoff series, and Finals
- Broadcasts of the FIBA Basketball World Cup (excluding New Zealand)
- Coverage of the women's equivalent, the FIBA Women's Basketball World Cup (excluding New Zealand)
- Australian domestic leagues including the National Basketball League and the Women's National Basketball League
- The American professional league for women: the Women's National Basketball Association
- Collegiate basketball competitions
- Events like the NBA Summer League
- The developmental circuit known as the NBA G League
- Coverage of women's professional competition under Athletes Unlimited Basketball
Cricket
Ice Hockey
Mixed martial arts
- UFC (including Fight Night and PPV preliminary bouts)
Multi-Sport Events
Poker
Professional wrestling
- All Elite Wrestling (covering AEW Dynamite, AEW Collision, and selected pay-per-view events)
Soccer
Additional programming
- NCAA competitions
- ESPN Films
- World's Strongest Man
- ESPY Award
News and talk shows
- Around the Horn
- College Gameday
- E:60
- First Take
- Highly Questionable
- Jalen & Jacoby
- Outside the Lines
- Pardon the Interruption Australia
- SportsCenter
- SportsCenter Australia
ESPN HD
When Foxtel HD+ launched in June 2008, ESPN HD was one of the initial five channels offered. The standard-definition ESPN channel transitioned to widescreen format beginning 25 January 2010. On 2 June 2011, ESPN HD along with ESPN3.com extended their services to New Zealand viewers through Sky.
ESPN 3D
The Australian debut of ESPN 3D occurred on 30 July 2010, showcasing eight hours of live X Games 16 coverage in three dimensions. Starting from 1 November 2010, ESPN 3D content was incorporated into Foxtel 3D, leading to the discontinuation of the standalone ESPN 3D channel on 30 September 2013 due to low audience engagement.