A Strategic Extension for College Sports
The CW Network and ESPN have inked a multi-year sublicense agreement that will keep ACC football and basketball on The CW's broadcast channel and streaming platform through the 2030-31 season.
Under the deal, The CW will air 14 regular-season football games, 30 men's basketball contests and 10 women's basketball games each year, delivering live coverage to households nationwide.
Starting this season, all of those events will also be streamed on the ESPN app, though viewers will need an ESPN Unlimited subscription to access the live feed.
The partnership builds on a relationship that began in the 2023-24 season, when The CW first started broadcasting ACC games and quickly saw those contests become some of the most-watched programming on the network.
Last year, four of the top five most-watched college football games on The CW were ACC matchups, highlighted by the Florida State versus North Alabama showdown, which remains the network's highest-rated game to date.
Viewership data underscore the growth: ACC football games posted a 26 percent year-over-year increase in total viewers, while women's basketball saw a 26 percent rise and men's basketball a 6 percent uptick.
Star quarterback Jordan Travis has been a focal point of the network's coverage, helping draw larger audiences to ACC matchups.
ACC Commissioner Jim Phillips praised the continued collaboration, thanking Disney and ESPN for their support and emphasizing the conference's early confidence in The CW's vision to become a major sports broadcast destination.
Brad Schwartz, president of The CW Network, called the extension a transformative partnership that will allow the network to reach the widest possible audience for all ACC contests.
The deal also reflects The CW's ambition to serve as a home for college sports fans across the United States, from the sunny fields of Florida and Alabama to venues nationwide.
With the agreement set to run through the 2030-31 season, The CW and ESPN are positioned to keep delivering high-profile college athletics to a broad audience, ensuring that student-athletes and their schools receive the exposure they deserve.