ESPN utilizes RedZone branding rights for first time with ‘RedZone at the US Open’

For the first time since securing the intellectual property rights for the RedZone brand as part of its equity deal with the NFL, ESPN is utilizing the RedZone franchise for a sport other than football.

On Monday, ESPN announced that it will bring RedZone’s patented whip-around coverage to tennis during the US Open later this month. The show, called RedZone at the US Open, will feature action from all 16 courts during the early rounds of the draw. RedZone at the US Open will debut on August 30 and run through Sept. 4, airing from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. ET each day. The feed will be available for ESPN Unlimited subscribers.

While this is ESPN’s first foray into a whip-around tennis show, the format has been a popular addition to TNT Sports’ coverage of the French Open the past two years. ESPN has not announced who will host RedZone coverage throughout the tournament.

With the whip-around show slated to be streaming-only, we won’t have much of a barometer for its success or failure from a viewership perspective. The hope for ESPN is that adding the RedZone branding to the US Open can give the feed gravitas it wouldn’t otherwise have.

Following ESPN’s acquisition of NFL Media assets, some speculated the network could use the RedZone branding to launch a college football version of the popular show. So far, that idea seems like a pipe dream as other networks are reluctant to cede live look-in rights to ESPN.

In addition to today’s RedZone tennis announcement, ESPN confirmed that all US Open matches will be available only to ESPN Unlimited subscribers this year. Previously, all US Open matches have been available on ESPN+ (now ESPN Select), the more affordable of ESPN’s direct-to-consumer offerings. The decision is in line with ESPN’s coverage of both the Australian Open and Wimbledon. Both tournaments made all matches available only to ESPN Unlimited subscribers.

Day 1 of the tournament will also be available to all Disney+ subscribers as Disney continues its push to integrate live sports into its streaming service.

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