Athletes Unlimited, ESPN Agree to Multi-Year Broadcast Deal

Viewers seeking Athletes Unlimited softball broadcasts will know where to look for the foreseeable future after the league and ESPN agreed on an exclusive multi-year broadcast deal. The deal, announced Wednesday, covers both AU’s softball and lacrosse leagues for the next two years. 

According to a league statement, the agreement covers more than 160 games across both sports. 

For softball, the deal covers both the new AUX short-season format in June and the regular “championship” season that begins in July. All 18 AUX games will air on either ESPN, ESPN2 or ESPNU, including a combination of ESPNU and ESPN for the opening doubleheader on June 13. 

The AUX schedule also includes a doubleheader on Thursday, June 23, the 50th anniversary of Tile IX, that will air on ESPNU. 

AUX games will be played at SDSU Softball Stadium in San Diego. 

For the AU championship season, 11 games will air on ESPN, ESPN2 or ESPNU. That lineup includes the season opener on July 29. The remaining 19 games will be available to stream on the ESPN Plus subscription service.  

The championship season returns for a third season at the Parkway Bank Sports Complex in Rosemont, Illinois.

“ESPN is excited to expand its relationship with Athletes Unlimited and be part of their innovative approach to women’s professional sports,” said Burke Magnus, ESPN president, programming and original content. “We are looking forward to showcasing these world class softball and lacrosse athletes as part of our longstanding commitment to women’s sports.” 

Terms of the agreement were not released.

ESPN will also carry live coverage of the AU draft, featuring players who have exhausted their college eligibility, on May 4 as part of its live stream of the espnW Summit.

Some AU softball games aired on ESPN platforms during the league’s inaugural 2020 season, but broadcast rights shifted to a combination of outlets that included CBS Sports and Fox Sports in 2021. 

Finding consistent broadcast outlets has long plagued professional softball efforts, even as the proliferation of streaming made content more accessible. A two-year agreement, in which the majority of softball broadcasts appear on linear television, is effectively unprecedented. It also folds AU into the programming plans of a network that already provides the vast majority of college softball broadcasts, including the Women’s College World Series.  

With the NCAA this year implementing an extended schedule for the World Series, the AUX opener could take place as little as three days after the final pitch of the college season.

Defending AU champion Aleshia Ocasio returns for both the AUX and championship seasons. Newcomers in 2022 include Rachel Garcia, who will play alongside U.S. Olympic teammates Amanda Chidester, Haylie McCleney, Dejah Mulipola, and Kelsey Stewart in AUX. 

In the standard AU format, four player-captains draft teams before each week of competition. Players earn points through individual and team accomplishments. Captains are determined by point totals, and the player who accumulates the most points throughout the season is named champion. AUX follows a similar format, with one fewer team and a shorter season.