Longhorn Network will continue as a free streaming service. Plus: Fox announces rights to UEFA Women’s EURO 2025; ESPN anchor John Anderson to join University of Missouri faculty after retirement from the network.
Longhorn Network to re-launch July 1st
The University of Texas has teamed up with Endeavor Streaming to re-launch the recently-defunct Longhorn Network cable channel as a new, free, streaming-only platform, Sports Business Journal reported Monday. Longhorn Network aired its final live broadcast as a cable channel last month after a nearly 13-year run.
The Austin-American Statesman reported last month that Longhorn Network would remain in some capacity as an app, and that new platform is now coming into focus. The new outfit will have four full-time employees with undergraduate students staffing production roles for much of the network’s content. The re-launched Longhorn Network will not broadcast live games — those rights now belong to ESPN/SEC Network — but will stream live coaches shows and a radio feed of games accompanied by a statcast. (Sports Business Journal, 6.24) (Austin American-Statesman, 5.19)
Fox to air UEFA Women’s EURO 2025
Fox announced itself as the new home for the UEFA Women’s EURO 2025 on Sunday during halftime of a USMNT-Bolivia Copa America match. ESPN aired the last UEFA Women’s EURO tournament in 2022.
The move bolsters Fox’s annual “Summer of Soccer” branding in a year where its largest tournament looks to be the 2025 CONCACAF Gold Cup. Although the USWNT will not feature in the European-based tournament, the current top four teams in the latest FIFA Women’s World Rankings — Spain, France, England, and Germany — will all participate in the competition.
Fox owns rights to most major international soccer tournaments, including the ongoing Men’s Euros and Copa America tournaments, as well as the upcoming 2026 FIFA World Cup in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. (Fox, 6.23)
John Anderson announces post-ESPN plans
Longtime SportsCenter anchor John Anderson announced he will join the faculty of the University of Missouri following his 25-year run with ESPN, KOMU reported Monday. Per the report, Anderson will begin his new role in January 2025, while continuing to broadcast “some track and field” for ESPN.
Anderson joined ESPN in 1999 and has been a fixture of the network’s flagship show SportsCenter ever since. In March, Anderson announced on the “Inside Wisconsin Show” that his contract with ESPN would run out in June, at which point he would step away, citing operational changes as a reason for his departure. Anderson will broadcast his final episode of SportsCenter on Friday. (KOMU, 6.24)
