Sportasy
| Company type | Subsidiary |
|---|---|
| Industry | Sports media, Internet |
| Predecessor | Yahoo! Scoreboard |
| Founded | December 8, 1997 |
Area served | North America |
| Products | Sports news, live streaming, fantasy sports, sports betting |
| Parent | Yahoo! |
| Website | sports |
Yahoo! Sports is a sports news website that was introduced by Yahoo! on December 8, 1997. The platform primarily obtains its data from Stats Perform. It hosts a wide array of writers and dedicated team pages, covering almost every prominent North American sport. Before its official debut, portions of the service were identified as Yahoo! Scoreboard.
Between 2011 and 2016, the Yahoo Sports brand also managed a US sports radio network, which has since been rebranded as SportsMap.
Sports covered
The U.S. version includes coverage of sports such as WWE, NFL, MLB, NBA, NHL, college football and basketball, NASCAR, golf, tennis, international soccer competitions including the FIFA World Cup and UEFA Champions League, Premier League, arena football, boxing, CFL, cycling, IndyCar, Major League Soccer, motorsports, the Olympics, NCAA baseball and ice hockey, women's basketball (WNBA), alpine skiing World Cup, track & field, cricket (UK), figure skating, rugby (UK), swimming, mixed martial arts, and horse racing. It formerly reported on the now-defunct ABL and WUSA.
Writers
Yahoo Sports employs numerous journalists, including the distinguished reporter Dan Wetzel.
Key dates in Yahoo Sports
- December 8, 1997: Official launch of Yahoo Sports.
- January 17, 2003: First significant website redesign.
- February 8, 2006: Introduction of Yahoo Sports Blog.
- May 8, 2006: Began offering free live NHL game streaming.
- May 30, 2006: Debut of Yahoo Sports Beta site.
- February 1, 2007: Unveiled current homepage; Beta site discontinued.
- June 21, 2007: Acquisition of Rivals.com for around $100 million.
- January 11, 2011: Merged with SportsFanLive.com to form ThePostGame.com online magazine.
- August 26, 2013: Rolled out major redesign featuring dark themes and larger typography; faced considerable user criticism.
- June 3, 2015: Secured exclusive NFL rights to livestream the October 25 Buffalo Bills vs. Jacksonville Jaguars game in London.
- January 29, 2016: Launched The Vertical section dedicated to NBA coverage.
- June 13, 2017: Verizon took over operations of Yahoo! Sports.
- December 11, 2017: Verizon and NFL agreed on streaming live local and primetime games via Yahoo! Sports Mobile App.
- January 17, 2018: Verizon acquired rights to stream NBA League Pass through Yahoo! Sports app for $200 per year.
- October 29, 2019: Announced partnership with BetMGM—a collaboration between MGM Resorts and GVC Holdings—for sports betting.
- November 14, 2019: Debuted Yahoo Sportsbook in New Jersey; further expansion subject to regulatory approval.
Yahoo and NBC Sports Group
On December 9, 2012, Yahoo partnered with the NBC Sports Group to establish a content and promotional agreement that integrated Yahoo Sports' original journalism, major event coverage, Rivals' collegiate content, and fantasy sports offerings with NBC Sports Group’s digital platforms and television promotion.
Although both entities maintain independent websites and editorial autonomy, they collaborate on delivering premium sports news and event coverage across digital channels and broadcast media. Yahoo Sports’ products are incorporated into NBC Sports Group’s online presence.
Highlights of this collaboration include:
Editorial Strength: The alliance features award-winning journalists such as NBC’s Bob Costas and Mike Florio alongside Yahoo Sports’ Dan Wetzel and Adrian Wojnarowski. Investigative reports from Yahoo Sports are showcased on NBC television with multi-platform distribution.
Original Video Content: Co-produced web video series include:
- Bob Costas: sports news interviews and commentary
- Football Night in America’s Tony Dungy & Rodney Harrison: NFL season features
- Mike Florio from ProFootballTalk: daily NFL web show titled Pro Football Talk Live
- Rivals on Recruiting: weekly college recruiting program featuring Rivals and NBC Sports personalities
Live Streaming: Yahoo Sports promotes NBC Sports Live Extra for live broadcasts of major events like Sunday Night Football and NHL Game of the Week while maintaining TV Everywhere access.
Fantasy Sports: Recognized as a leading fantasy platform, Yahoo Sports serves as the exclusive fantasy game provider for NBC Sports’ Rotoworld covering football, baseball, hockey, soccer as well as College Bowl Pick'em and Tourney Pick'em games.
Rivals.com: Delivers recruiting news and college sports coverage for NBCSports.com and regional affiliates.
NBC Sports Regional Networks: Act as Yahoo Sports’ preferred local content source in key markets by integrating team pages with fantasy experts and talent.
NBC’s Alli Sports: Provides youth-oriented action-sports videos and content featured on Yahoo Sports.
Blogs
| Sport | Title | Editor |
|---|---|---|
| NFL | Shutdown Corner | Frank Schwab |
| MLB | Big League Stew | Kevin Kaduk |
| NBA | Ball Don't Lie | |
| NHL | Puck Daddy | |
| College football | Dr. Saturday | Graham Watson |
| College basketball | The Dagger | Jeff Eisenberg |
| NASCAR | From the Marbles | Jay Busbee |
| Golf | Devil Ball Golf | Shane Bacon |
| Olympics | Fourth-Place Medal | Maggie Hendricks |
| Mixed martial arts | Cagewriter | Maggie Hendricks |
| Fantasy sports | Roto Arcade | Andy Behrens |
| Tennis | Busted Racquet | Shane Bacon |
| Association Football | Dirty Tackle | Brooks Peck |
| High School Sports | Prep Rally | Cameron Smith |
Notable accomplishments
- According to comScore Media Metrix in 2006, Yahoo Sports attracted more fan engagement time than any other sports website.
- Ahead of the 2006 NFL draft, Yahoo Sports broke the story regarding Reggie Bush allegedly receiving gifts from a sports marketing agency.
- On August 16, 2011, an extensive investigation by Yahoo Sports unveiled a significant University of Miami athletics controversy, derived from interviews with former booster and convicted fraudster Nevin Shapiro.
- On June 23, 2016, Yahoo Sports collaborated with The Vertical to deliver the inaugural live stream of an NBA draft, covering the 2016 event in real time. This broadcast drew over 2.8 million unique viewers with an average viewing duration of 34 minutes, exceeding ESPN’s audience of 2.4 million for the same draft. This achievement prompted a return for the 2017 NBA draft livestream.