ESPN and LaLiga have reached a long-term agreement that will make ESPN+ the new English- and Spanish-language home for LaLiga Santander and LaLiga SmartBank in the United States for the next eight seasons (through 2028-29).
Beginning in August, hundreds of live matches across both leagues will be available each year, exclusively on ESPN+. ESPN is already the home of Spanish Copa del Rey, Copa de la Reina and Supercopa de España.
LaLiga Santander, the top division in Spanish soccer, is one of the world’s marquee sports leagues, featuring 20 clubs, including perennial global powers FC Barcelona, Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid, Sevilla FC and more. ESPN+ will stream live and on-demand replay coverage of all 380 LaLiga Santander matches per season.
ESPN+ also will livestream a selection of LaLiga SmartBank matches each round all season long, including five postseason promotion playoffs. All matches will be available to fans in English and Spanish.
Beyond live matches, ESPN+ will offer a variety of surround programming, including match previews, highlights, magazine shows – and will continue to cover LaLiga extensively on signature ESPN+ shows including ESPN FC, Jorge Ramos y su Banda and Fuera de Juego.
Select matches will air across ESPN networks each season, with coverage and highlights also available on SportsCenter and other ESPN studio programs, as well as on ESPN digital and social platforms.
The LaLiga rights agreement adds to the industry-leading lineup of soccer on ESPN+, which includes Spain’s Copa Del Rey, the German Bundesliga, MLS, England’s FA Cup, EFL and Carabao Cup, Dutch Eredivisie, Scottish Premiership, UEFA National Team Football, USL, and much more.
ESPN+ offers fans more than 2,900 matches per season (more than 1,000 in both English and Spanish).
“This agreement will bring the excitement, passion, iconic clubs and global superstars of LaLiga to U.S. sports fans with unprecedented access and coverage,” ESPN executive vice president, programming and original content Burke Magnus said in a statement. “As the sport of soccer continues its ascendance in the U.S. market, we are incredibly excited to work with LaLiga to establish a deeper connection to American fans through our company’s industry-leading streaming platforms, television networks, and digital and social media assets.”
Added LaLiga president Javier Tebas: “We are absolutely thrilled to bring LaLiga to ESPN in the U.S. This is an historic eight-season agreement in U.S. soccer broadcasting that speaks to the power of LaLiga and its clubs in the largest media market in the world and will bring the world’s best soccer league to American screens in a more comprehensive and modern way than ever before.”
The deal also includes rights for Canada. TSN and RDS, Canada’s leading sports networks, will deliver comprehensive coverage of LaLiga matches, highlights, and news to Canadian viewers through multiple platforms, including live streaming on TSN.ca, RDS.ca, and the TSN and RDS apps.
Highlights of the long-term agreement include:
* 380 LaLiga Santander matches per season, featuring all 20 teams in first division soccer in Spain, including performances by top teams FC Barcelona, Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid, Sevilla FC, and others;
Select matches from LaLiga SmartBank, showcasing Spain’s Segunda División;
* Five promotion playoff matches each season;
* LaLiga Show and LaLiga World – two weekly, in-season magazine programs.
* LaLiga Show previews key LaLiga matchups each match week;
* LaLiga World features highlights, interviews, and classic moments from the previous weekend’s action;
* LaLiga Season Preview and Review – two separate one-hour pre-and post-season programs each year,
* El Clásico specials – one-hour programs that showcase the most famous derby in global soccer ahead of the home-and-away regular season FC Barcelona vs. Real Madrid matches;
* LaLiga Highlights Show, recapping each week’s games; special programs about first division soccer in Spain; a weekly LaLiga SmartBank highlights and magazine show; and more
* Select programming from LaLigaTV – the English-language network devoted to 24/7 coverage of the league;
* Classic LaLiga Matches – Access to some of the league’s most recent storied matches.
