Big East, ESPN reunite with 6-year media rights deal

Key Points

• The Big East Conference and ESPN have struck a six-year digital media rights deal, marking the conference’s return to ESPN platforms.
• As part of the agreement, ESPN+ will stream over 300 Big East events annually, enhancing visibility across all 22 sports.
• ESPN previously held Big East rights from 1980 to 2013 and is reuniting with the conference after losing Big Ten rights to other networks in 2022.
• Big East Commissioner Val Ackerman said the partnership guarantees the visibility women’s basketball and Olympic sports have earned and delivers the access fans expect.

The Big East Conference and ESPN announced a six-year digital media rights deal on Tuesday.

Big East Commissioner Val Ackerman said in a statement that the agreement gives “all 22 of our sports — especially women’s basketball and Olympic sports — the visibility they’ve earned and the access our fans expect.”

“This exciting partnership with ESPN reinforces our commitment to placing Big East teams front and center on the leading digital sports platform,” Ackerman said.

ESPN had the rights to the Big East from 1980 to 2013. The revived partnership comes after ESPN lost Big Ten media rights to Fox, NBC and CBS in 2022.

“We’re pleased to welcome the Big East back to ESPN,” Nick Dawson, the network's senior vice president of programming and acquisitions, said in a statement. “This agreement returns one of the country’s premier conferences and its tradition of excellence to ESPN platforms. We look forward to this new chapter in our relationship with the Big East.”

ESPN+ will stream over 300 Big East events annually. Financial terms of the deal were not included in the announcement.

The Big East wrapped up a competitive 2024-2025 campaign led by the UConn women’s basketball team, which won its 12th national title in April. The St. John's men's basketball team had a strong regular season, earning a No. 2 seed in the NCAA Tournament before being eliminated in the second round by No. 10 Arkansas.

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