All England Club Announces New 12-year Agreement With ESPN

Written by: Staff on 5th July 2011

All England Club Announces New 12-year Agreement With ESPN

Novak Djokovic of Serbia returns to Rafael Nadal of Spain during the men's singles final of the Wimbledon Championships at the All England Lawn Tennis Club, in London, Britain, 03 July 2011. EPA/KERIM OKTEN |

ESPN ACQUIRES ALL WIMBLEDON LIVE U.S. TV RIGHTS

INCLUDING SINGLES FINALS

Twelve-Year Agreement Starting in 2012

London, UK, Tuesday 5 July 2011: The All England Club, Wimbledon, today announced that ESPN has acquired the exclusive U.S. television rights to live action from The Championships, including both the Ladies’ and Gentlemen’s Singles Finals, in a 12-year agreement beginning in 2012. Comprehensive coverage from start to finish across a variety of platforms will result in more tennis for fans and all of it live.

ESPN will present Wimbledon on its multimedia array of platforms, including both ESPN and ESPN2 simultaneously the second Monday-Wednesday. This will allow for expanded coverage of the Round of 16 and live telecasts of all quarterfinals. ESPN will televise the semi-finals and finals. ESPN on ABC will broadcast a highlights show on the “middle Sunday” of the tournament, and will re-air the finals on a same-day basis at 3 p.m. ET.

In addition to the newly acquired rights, all of ESPN’s existing coverage will continue — television, broadband, mobile, and other rights in the U.S., Latin America and Canada. Since 2003, ESPN networks have aired approximately 100 hours annually – with another 650 on ESPN3.com, primarily on weekdays and capped by one Ladies’ and one Gentlemen’s semi-final. Through 2023, the television schedule will increase to more than 140 hours, including full live national coverage of the semi-finals and finals. ESPN3.com’s schedule will expand to 750 hours, also with the semi-finals and finals presented live.

Ian Ritchie, Chief Executive of The All England Lawn Tennis Club, said: “We are delighted to be extending our partnership with ESPN, in a move which will consolidate our U.S. media rights under the auspices of a single partner. This new agreement will bring increased live coverage of The Championships and ensure that the huge international audience for Wimbledon can now enjoy all the drama and colour of the Fortnight through a sustained narrative delivered with clarity, continuity and consistency across a wide range of platforms.”

George Bodenheimer, president, ESPN and ABC Sports, said, “We are proud to have been a partner of The All England Club the past nine years and are thrilled to be given continuing responsibility for honoring Wimbledon’s rich tradition. Over the next 12 years, we’ll work closely together to move coverage of this great event forward with live coverage on television and using all the latest technologies and screens.”