ESPN Renewed Athletes Unlimited Deal for Three Years

here’s⁣ a breakdown ⁢of the key​ information from the provided text:

* ESPN renews rights to athletes Unlimited (AU): ESPN has extended its broadcasting agreement wiht AU, a network of professional ‍women’s sports​ leagues, for ⁣another three years.
* Coverage: The deal includes exclusive coverage of over 50 ⁢AU​ games ⁢per ‍year across basketball,⁢ softball, lacrosse, and volleyball. All basketball and volleyball games will be on ESPN+ ⁤and ESPNU.
* ⁢ Historic Broadcast: ABC (ESPN’s sister‍ channel) will broadcast at least one AU ‌Softball League championship series game in 2026 – the first time a women’s pro softball game will be shown on US network television.
* AU’s Growth: Athletes Unlimited launched in 2020 with softball ⁢and has ⁤expanded to​ include volleyball, lacrosse, and basketball.
* ESPN’s History with​ AU: ESPN​ initially held rights ⁢for ⁢softball and lacrosse in ​2022, adding volleyball ‍in ⁤2023 and basketball in February ⁣2024, culminating‍ in full⁣ rights coverage.
* Strong‌ Viewership: ESPN ​cites​ record viewership for college sports (specifically the Women’s College‍ World Series) ⁣as a factor ⁣in the renewal.
* ‍ MLB Investment: The agreement follows a recent strategic⁤ investment ‌in⁣ the AU Softball ​League by Major League Baseball.