ESPN had one of the most eventful summers in the history of the network, from massive layoffs to its foray into an exclusive sports betting partnership.
ESPN’s president for content Burke Magnus -- who has worked in various roles with The Walt Disney Co. (DIS) -) network for nearly three decades -- spoke on The Athletic's “Sports Media with Richard Diestch” podcast and gave his thoughts on a slew of topics involving sports and ESPN’s next moves.
Around 7,000 employees were reportedly laid off across the entire Disney company, and ESPN had some of the most high profile layoffs with about 20 on-air talents let go in late June. Magnus confirmed that he and ESPN chairman Jimmy Pitaro spoke in separate town halls to confirm that the layoffs are at least over for the rest of the year.
“We were clear about two things: One is that we can't say that it'll never happen again, but we can say that it's over and for now, and I certainly it carries through the balance of this year,” Magnus said.
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One of the most high profile layoffs was of NBA commentator Jeff Van Gundy, who had called the NBA Finals for the network for nearly two decades.
Magnus said that Van Gundy’s dismissal, and subsequently that of Mark Jackson, was due to a “combination of things” including future planning and cost cutting.
Van Gundy and Jackson were replaced by Hall of Fame broadcaster Doris Burke and former NBA head coach Doc Rivers.
Magnus also spoke about the value of ESPN retaining the rights to broadcasting the NBA. The NBA’s media rights deal which is split between ESPN/ABC and TNT expires after the 2024-25 season, and there’s an expectation that there will be many suitors for the league.
“We love it, we want very much to keep it,” Magnus said. “We hope to come out of it with a package that looks pretty similar to what we have now.”
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The current media rights deal of the league costs about 2.7 billion per year, but there’s an expectation it could rise to as much as $8 billion annually.
But while the NBA is one of the biggest leagues, Magnus also touched on sports and leagues that have a major opportunity for growth, mentioning a lot of women’s sports.
“I think it’s going to be another leap for women’s basketball deeper into the regular season,” Magnus said. “I think softball and volleyball in particular have just started to scratch the surface.”
There were some record breaking numbers for women’s college sports viewership last year, including the 9.9 million average viewership of the NCAA Women’s National Championship game.
Magnus also mentioned the potential of gymnastics to grow beyond the Olympics, and called the LPGA a “sleeping giant.”
He also spoke on ESPN’s latest partnership with Penn Entertainment to bring in an exclusive sportsbook to the brand. He confirmed prior statements from Disney CEO Bob Iger and Penn CEO Jay Snowden that ESPN Bet is looking to launch within the football season, and that ESPN had been exploring other partnerships with other betting companies prior to agreeing with Penn.
But Magnus also spoke on a unique topic which was on whether ESPN employees would be able to bet.
“We don't have any policy on this currently,” Magnus said. “We're trying to figure out right now and maybe take the employee population and divide it into certain characteristics based on your particular role as to what might be permissible, might not be permissible from a betting perspective.”
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