ESPN today announced it has reached an agreement with Eclat Media Group regarding the KBO League – South Korea’s most popular sports league – to exclusively televise, in English, regular-season games throughout Canada, Mexico, Central America, the Caribbean (including the Dominican Republic), Europe, Middle East, Africa, and parts of Asia.
Un-Chan Chung, Commissioner of the Korea Baseball Organization, said: “I am pleased that the KBO league will be introduced to a broader audience. In this uncertain time, I hope our league can be a role-model to the world of sports and become a favorite brand to baseball fans globally.”
Added Mitchell W Hong, Eclat Media Group CEO: “We’re excited to be working with ESPN to deliver baseball to more fans around the world.”
As part of the agreement, ESPN and its affiliate partners will become the English-language home for KBO League live games and highlights for the 2020 season throughout the aforementioned territories. The deal includes the postseason and the Korea Series best-of-seven championship.
Deal highlights include:
- Linear and digital rights across, Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean (including the Dominican Republic). In those regions, games will air across ESPN platforms, including ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN3 and ESPN Play, ESPN’s multiscreen live and on-demand broadband service in the region.
- In Canada, games will be made available on TSN’s linear and digital platforms.
- In Europe, the Middle East, Africa and select countries in Asia, games will stream live and on-demand on ESPN Player, ESPN’s OTT platform.
- In Africa, games will be distributed on ESPN Africa.
- In the Netherlands, games will be made available on Fox Sports linear and digital platforms.
- Throughout most of Asia (excluding Japan, Korea, Taiwan and India), games will air on the FOX Sports Asia linear networks.
ESPN play-by-play voices, analysts and reporters will provide commentary in English, remotely, from their home studios in the U.S. ESPN baseball commentators contributing to KBO League coverage include Karl Ravech, Jon Sciambi, Eduardo Perez, Jessica Mendoza and Kyle Peterson.
What To Know About the KBO
- Founded in 1982, currently consists of 10 teams
- Regular season is 144 games; each team plays every other team 16 times
- Defending champions are the Doosan Bears (6th title)
- Most Titles: Kia Tigers (11); the Tigers have never lost in the Korean Series (11-0)
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