Sports 5 gets huge boost with ESPN partnership

Filipino sports fans can get more of their daily fix as ESPN, a worldwide leader in multimedia sports, collaborates with TV5 both on television and digital platforms.

“ESPN strengthens our current position as the country’s sports authority,” said TV5 president Chot Reyes. “We want to cement our dominance and what better brand to partner with than ESPN.”

TV5’s Sports 5, rebranded as ESPN 5, will still carry its current sports portfolio including the PBA, the Philippine SuperLiga and the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC).

But the partnership will also bring to the Philippines more sports coverages such as the US NCAA March Madness, X Games, IndyCar racing, ESPN’s Big Fights library and sports documentaries.

A daily Philippine edition of the iconic SportsCenter will also be aired.

“We see an elevated coverage,” Reyes said during the official launch Thursday at Sofitel. “We’re aspiring for the same look, feel and pace of ESPN.”

Digital offerings, which include a co-branded website, a mobile application and an ESPN Player streaming service, will be up soon.

“This long-term collaboration across television and digital allows us to jointly serve millions of sports fans in the Philippines with exceptional content and coverage,” said Mike Morrison, vice president and general manager of ESPN APAC.