Disney.com.au
Disney Advertising presented its ESPN 2025 Upfront on Tuesday, September 16, highlighting the strength and scale of ESPN Australia and New Zealand and opportunities to reach its highly engaged sports fans.
The Upfront, held at the iconic Taronga Zoo in Sydney, showcased ESPN as the most widely available premium sports network across Pay TV and Streaming, available in up to 8 million households, including as an ESPN tile for all Disney+ subscribers.
ESPN provides Australian and New Zealand audiences with a local lens, in a local voice, across its ecosystem: ESPN and ESPN2 channels, ESPN.com.au, ESPN Podcasts, ESPN Social Media, ESPN FootyTips – Australia’s largest tipping platform – along with local studio programming such as “Nothing But Net”, “Around the Wicket” and local edition of “SportsCenter”.
Hosts of ESPN’s SportsCenter and Nothing But Net, Kane Pitman and Skubie Mageza, hosted the Upfront event, held in the week of ESPN Australia’s 30th anniversary. ESPN launched in Australia on 19 September 1995 as a foundation channel on Optus Vision in 1995, Australia's first cable Pay TV platform.
The Walt Disney Company Australia and New Zealand Senior Vice President and Managing Director, and Head of ESPN Asia Pacific, Kylie Watson-Wheeler, said: “We're thrilled ESPN has brought to life its world of sports in Australia for the past 30 years.
“ESPN Australia has cemented its place as the go-to destination for millions of sports fans with the ‘Best of the US’ and all the basketball action as ‘The Home for Hoops’.
“We’re laser focused on the next generation of Australian sports fans, and our advertising partners know the opportunity that the reach and scale of ESPN in this market represents. Our audiences are fans like no other, and we’re excited advertisers will soon be able to reach them with our best-in-class ad solutions in live sports.”
Next Big Play with ESPN SVOD Advertising on Disney+
All Disney+ subscribers in Australia and New Zealand have access to ESPN, unlocking premium sports content beyond the linear channels — including NFL RedZone, every NHL and WNBL game, hundreds of NCAA football matchups, and more.
The breadth of content on ESPN fuels fandom and unlocks powerful advertising and integration opportunities for partners, delivered by Disney’s world-class advertising technology.
This includes the upcoming launch of dynamic ad insertion (DAI) within ESPN live content on Disney+ in Australia and New Zealand, taking in an expansive world of 14,000 live events a year.
The new offering will be powered by the Disney Ad Server, with every ad break in ESPN live content fully addressable and delivered digitally. This will lay the groundwork to launch additional advanced capabilities throughout 2026, including Disney’s audience targeting solution, Disney Select.
Best of US Sports and Home for Hoops
ESPN is the primary rights holder in Australia and New Zealand for a collection of premium sports spanning the NFL, NBA, NHL, and MLB – including showstoppers the Super Bowl and NBA Finals. Localised feeds allow for authentic and targeted advertising integration opportunities.
This includes across the most comprehensive basketball rights package in local market history, anchored by an 11-year deal with the NBA and WNBA.
Every season, fans can access more than 270 NBA games – including the Finals – almost four times more than other platforms. And ESPN will showcase more WNBA games than ever before.
Multi-year deals are in place with the NBL and WNBL to carry every game of both leagues, and a new agreement with FIBA means fans can watch the Opals at the 2026 Basketball World Cup and the Boomers at the 2027 Basketball World Cup – only on ESPN.
U.S. college basketball remains unrivalled: more than 800 games every season, capped off by every moment of March Madness.
NFL Touchdowns on ESPN Like Nowhere Else
The NFL remains a cornerstone of ESPN content – delivering consistent growth, unmatched engagement, and the power to intersect sport and culture.
ESPN carries more NFL games than any other platform in the region – including every primetime matchup. Monday Night Football coverage offers deep and rich advertising integration.
NFL RedZone is now available via ESPN on Disney+, delivering seven hours of live action – every Monday morning, on top of a minimum six live games each week.
ESPN will also deliver the Super Bowl LX broadcast, created specifically for Australian and New Zealand fans and brands, live from San Francisco, in February 2026.
