Kayo is keeping ESPN.
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All Disney+ Premium and Standard subscribers in Australia and New Zealand will have access to ESPN on Disney+, with thousands of premier sporting events on show.
They’re not psying extra for it now, but give it some time. They’ll find a way to gouge you.
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Thank you! Looking forward to it. Hopefully D+ would do a better job with ESPN than Foxtel/Kayo.
They say no extra cost
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This is the text of the release.
The world’s greatest sports entertainment is set to light up on Disney+ in Australia and New Zealand in 2025.
Disney+ today announced the expansion of its entertainment offering with ESPN sports programming set to light up on Disney+ in Australia and New Zealand in the coming months.
The launch follows the addition of ESPN content to Disney+ in Latin America in June 2024. Australia and New Zealand are the first English-speaking markets outside of North America to launch ESPN on Disney+, following the US debut in December 2024.
The ESPN hub on Disney+ will bring more than 10,000 hours of ESPN’s live sports action to the platform via live ESPN and ESPN2 channels, with fan-favourite studio shows including SportsCenter , The Pat McAfee Show , NBA Today , and First Take , along with live events and on-demand replays, and iconic original programming including ESPN’s award-winning library of 30 for 30 films.
All Disney+ Premium and Standard subscribers in Australia and New Zealand will have access to ESPN on Disney+, with thousands of premier sporting events on show.
ESPN on Disney+ adds to The Walt Disney Company’s more than 100 years of best-in-class content, including the latest and greatest from its iconic brands and franchises – Disney, Pixar, Marvel, Star Wars and National Geographic – as well as the Star tile’s expansive General Entertainment offering which includes content from FX, Searchlight, Hulu, and locally produced Originals, such as The Artful Dodger , Shipwreck Hunters Australia and The Clearing , among others.
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 excited to bring ESPN to Disney+ for sports fans across our sports-loving nations. Sport on Disney+ is an innovative game-changer. It further enriches our already strong and unique content offering, boosts value for subscribers, and serves sports fans anytime, anywhere.
“Disney+ will provide access to the biggest ESPN offering ever delivered in our market, including live games and on-demand replays. ESPN’s unrivalled coverage of massive global sporting events and dedicated local programming adds to the wide array of entertainment already available on Disney+ for audiences of all ages.”
ESPN has extensive rights to major sporting events. Upcoming highlights include the NBA All-Star Weekend, NBL Championship Series, MLB Opening Day, the NBA Finals and the NHL Stanley Cup Final.
ESPN, which is the “Home for Hoops” with basketball action across the NBA and WNBA, celebrates 30 years in Australia in 2025 with its locally operated business spanning TV, digital and editorial platforms serving sports fans anytime, anywhere.
In addition to the ESPN offering that will be on Disney+, ESPN is available via Foxtel, Kayo Sport, Fetch TV, and Sky NZ.
When can I watch ESPN on Disney+?
Stay tuned for announcement of the timing ahead of launch in the coming months.
Who will be able to watch ESPN on Disney+?
ESPN content will be available to all Disney+ subscribers in ANZ (Standard and Premium) except profiles in Junior Mode. The full ESPN on Disney+ content offering will be available to profiles with 18+ Content Maturity settings.
What sports content will be on ESPN on Disney+?
The new ESPN hub on Disney+ will bring more than 10,000 hours of ESPN’s live sports action to the platform via the ESPN and ESPN2 channels, additional on-demand live events, on-demand replays and iconic original programming.
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For the first time, the NBA All-Star Game will feature a mini tournament with four teams and three games. Two teams will meet in one semifinal (Game 1), and the remaining two teams will meet in the other semifinal (Game 2).
The winning teams from Game 1 and Game 2 will advance to face each other in the championship (Game 3). For each game, the winner will be the first team to reach or surpass 40 points.
The four teams are Team Shaq (Shaquille O’Neal), Team Kenny (Kenny Smith), Team Chuck (Charles Barkley) and the winning team from the championship game of the Rising Stars Challenge.
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ESPN exclusives I’d assume?
I expect the Sunday game to be on 10 (like today’s).
The fixture of 2025 WNBL semi finals series was also confirmed yesterday.
Bendigo Spirit v Sydney Flames
Game 1 – Sunday 23rd February – 3:30pm (AEDT) – Red Energy Arena, Bendigo
Game 2 – Thursday 27th February – 7:00pm (AEDT) – Quaycentre, Sydney
Game 3 (if required) – Sunday 2nd March – 2:30pm (AEDT) – Red Energy Arena, Bendigo
Perth Lynx v Townsville Fire
Game 1 – Saturday 22nd February – 5:00pm (AWST) – Bendat Basketball Centre, Perth
Game 2 – Wednesday 26th February – 6:30pm (AEST) – Townsville Entertainment Centre
Game 3 (if required) – Saturday 1st March – 5:00pm (AWST) – Bendat Basketball Centre, Perth
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It will be interesting to see how this will affect MLB coverage in Australia and NZ from next year onwards.
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I had been considering cancelling my MLB TV subscription. I know it is still a year away but might reconsider that idea.
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if espn stop broadcasting baseball i might sign up myself.
I wouldn’t be surprised if they retain MLB rights outside of the US, the majority of the coverage is non-ESPN games anyway
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Illawarra Hawks will face Melbourne United in the 2025 NBL Championship Series, starting this Saturday in Wollongong.
https://nbl.com.au/news/hawks-v-united-championship-series-set
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ESPN is currently showing Pelicans vs Grizzlies (using grizzlies feed) when ESPN in 
actually has Bucks vs Cavs game.
I thought they would broadcast most ESPN nba games as most ABC nba matches are during the early hours. There was 2 ABC games and 1 ESPN game today
ESPN are instead showing 2 games using local feeds
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