French telecommunications company SFR has agreed a deal with ESPN to carry the international sports broadcaster’s US-oriented ESPN America channel on its pay-television network.
Under the deal, SFR has also renewed a carriage agreement for the ESPN Classic archive channel in France.
ESPN America and ESPN Classic are immediately available as part of SFR’s Bouquet Sélection and Grand Spectacle packages. The high-definition version of the ESPN America channel will be available from February 12.
“For more than a decade, ESPN has been serving the passionate sports fans in France, and these agreements will help us continue and expand that,” Murray Barnett, vice-president of sports channels and syndication at ESPN’s Europe, Middle East and Africa division.
“ESPN America continues to grow behind the increase in popularity of US sports in France and across Europe, and ESPN Classic offers SFR’s IPTV and fibre viewers a fresh and passionate look at the biggest legends and moments in sports, as well as the very best in sports documentary films.”