History of ESPN2 in Timeline

ESPN2 is an American multinational pay television network. It is owned by ESPN Inc., a joint venture between the Walt Disney Company and Hearst Communications. It primarily broadcasts sports-related content and serves as a sister channel to ESPN, offering an alternative programming lineup and often showcasing niche sports, extreme sports, and a different style of sports commentary and analysis.

October 1, 1993: ESPN2 Launch

On October 1, 1993, ESPN2 launched at 7:30 p.m. ET with the premiere of SportsNight, a sports news program hosted by Keith Olbermann and Suzy Kolber. ESPN2, nicknamed "The Deuce," aimed to be a more informal and youth-oriented channel than ESPN.

1993: ESPN2 Initial Lineup

In 1993, ESPN2's initial lineup featured studio programs such as SportsNight, Talk2 hosted by Jim Rome, Max Out, SportsSmash, NFL 2Night, NHL 2Night, and RPM 2Night. Event coverage focused on mainstream sports such as auto racing, college basketball, and NHL hockey, as well as extreme sports.

September 18, 1994: ESPN2 Simulcasts CART Race

On September 18, 1994, ESPN2 simulcasted CART's Bosch Spark Plug Grand Prix using only onboard camera feeds, showcasing experimental broadcasting technology.

1995: Introduction of BottomLine

In 1995, ESPN2 introduced the "BottomLine", a persistent news ticker displaying sports news and scores. The BottomLine was later adopted by ESPN and its future properties.

2001: ESPN2 Logo Change

In 2001, ESPN2 dropped the "graffiti 2" logo in favor of a version of ESPN's main logo as the network phased out its youth-oriented format.

2003: ESPN2 Begins Broadcasting Major League Lacrosse Games

In 2003, ESPN2 began broadcasting Major League Lacrosse games, expanding its sports coverage.

January 2005: ESPN2 Broadcasts in High Definition

In January 2005, ESPN2 began broadcasting in high definition in the 720p resolution format.

January 2006: Cold Pizza Replaced

In January 2006, Cold Pizza was supplanted by the television simulcast of ESPN Radio's Mike and Mike in the Morning and moved to a later time slot.

2006: ESPN2 Broadcasts World Baseball Classic

In 2006, ESPN2 broadcast much of the World Baseball Classic, adding to its coverage of mainstream sporting events.

January 2007: Quite Frankly Canceled

In January 2007, Quite Frankly with Stephen A. Smith was canceled due to extremely low ratings and several timeslot changes.

February 12, 2007: ESPN2 Branding Changes

Since February 12, 2007, the ESPN2 brand has been used for station identification only, with all programming using the same on-air presentation and ESPN branding as those on the main network.

February 2007: NASCAR Now Premieres

In February 2007, ESPN2 premiered NASCAR Now, a daily show focusing on NASCAR, after ESPN became part of a new broadcast contract with the association.

March 2007: ESPN2 and MLL New Broadcast Contract

In March 2007, ESPN2 and Major League Lacrosse agreed on a new broadcast contract that ran until the 2016 season.

May 2007: Cold Pizza Renamed

In May 2007, Cold Pizza moved from New York City to ESPN headquarters in Bristol, Connecticut, and was renamed ESPN First Take.

March 16, 2008: ESPN2 Airs SEC Basketball Championship

On March 16, 2008, ESPN2 aired CBS-produced coverage of the SEC men's basketball championship game in most of the country due to a tornado damaging the original game site and a scheduling conflict with CBS's coverage of the Big Ten championship game.

2009: ESPN2 Broadcasts FIFA World Cup Qualifiers

In 2009, ESPN2 broadcast the United States' FIFA World Cup qualifiers, adding to its soccer coverage.

January 2011: ESPN2HD Branding Phased Out

In January 2011, the separate ESPN2HD branding began to be phased out.

2011: ESPN2 Broadcasts American Le Mans Series Events

In 2011, ESPN2 acquired broadcast rights to delayed coverage for some American Le Mans Series events, with major events airing on ABC.

2016: ESPN2 and MLL Broadcast Contract Ended

In 2016, ESPN2 and Major League Lacrosse broadcast contract ended.

2016: ESPN2 Simulcasts ESPN Deportes

Since 2016, ESPN2 has occasionally been used to carry simulcasts of ESPN Deportes' Spanish-language coverage of events, in an effort to promote the channel.

October 4, 2017: ESPN Acquires Formula One Rights

On October 4, 2017, ESPN announced it had acquired rights to the Formula One World Championship, with most races carried by ESPN2.

2017: ESPN2 Simulcasts ESPN Deportes

From the 2017 NFL season through 2020, ESPN2 simulcast ESPN Deportes' Spanish-language broadcasts of Monday Night Football during the first nine weeks of the season.

August 8, 2018: ESPN2 Stunts as ESPN8: The Ocho

On August 8, 2018, ESPN2 transformed into "ESPN8: The Ocho", showcasing unconventional and obscure sporting events as an homage to the film DodgeBall: A True Underdog Story.

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August 20, 2019: Daily Wager Moves to ESPN2

On August 20, 2019, the ESPNews sports betting studio show Daily Wager (now ESPN Bet Live) was moved to ESPN2.

2020: ESPN2 Simulcasts ESPN Deportes

From the 2017 NFL season through 2020, ESPN2 simulcast ESPN Deportes' Spanish-language broadcasts of Monday Night Football during the first nine weeks of the season.

2021: Manningcast Replaces Spanish Simulcast

In the 2021 season, the Spanish simulcast of MNF on ESPN2 was replaced with Monday Night Football with Peyton and Eli (the "Manningcast"), hosted by Eli and Peyton Manning.

2021: NHL Returns to ESPN

In the 2021-22 season, the NHL returned to ESPN, with ESPN2 serving as a secondary broadcaster during the Stanley Cup playoffs.

December 2023: ESPN2 Availability

As of December 2023, ESPN2 is available in approximately 70 million pay television households in the United States, which is a decrease from its 2011 peak.