Pay-TV broadcaster Sky New Zealand has renewed its distribution agreement with international sports network ESPN.

Through the multi-year extension, Sky customers will continue to access ESPN and ESPN2 channels on the linear Sky Sport channel and streamed on Sky Sport Now and Sky Go.

The agreement will see Sky carry ESPN’s array of sports rights, including Major League Baseball (MLB), American football’s NFL, ice hockey’s NHL, and basketball coverage from the NBA, FIBA, and Australia’s NBL.   

Sky’s MLB coverage will include the regular season, All-Star weekend, playoffs, and World Series, while from the NFL it will cover pre-season, Sunday/Monday/Thursday Night Football games, Thanksgiving games, the playoffs, and ESPN's exclusive ANZ broadcast of the Super Bowl.

The basketball offering will feature over 180 NBA regular-season games, NBA All-Star weekend, the playoffs, and NBA Finals, every game of the NBL season, including all New Zealand Breakers matches, and marquee matches from international basketball, including the New Zealand Tall Blacks and men’s and women’s FIBA Basketball World Cups.

From the NHL, Sky will show the regular season and the Stanley Cup playoffs.

In addition, the agreement includes NCAA college basketball and football coverage, such as the popular March Madness tournament, College Football Playoffs, and key conference games.

Adam Crothers, Sky’s head of content partnerships, said: “Our goal is to connect our customers with the sport and entertainment they love, wherever they are in New Zealand.

“ESPN is the home of US sports, and this renewal means fans can continue to enjoy its biggest names and moments – from the Super Bowl to the NBA Finals and beyond.”

In terms of recent rights activity, Sky NZ consolidated its golf portfolio by extending its exclusive broadcast rights to the DP World Tour until the end of the 2029 season and renewing its partnership with the country’s annual New Zealand Open.