CW Sports
{{Short description|Sports division of American broadcast network The CW}}
{{Infobox programming block
| name = CW Sports
| image = CW Sports 2024 vector logo.svg
| premiered = {{Start date and age|2023|02|25}}
| headquarters = Burbank, California
| key_people = Michael Perman (SVP, CW Sports){{cite web|last=Vlessing|first=Etan|title=The CW Network Taps Michael Perman to Lead Sports Efforts|url=https://www.hollywoodreporter.com/business/business-news/cw-network-michael-perman-1236135746/|work=The Hollywood Reporter|date=February 11, 2025|access-date=February 14, 2025}}
| division = The CW
| country = United States
| major_contracts = {{Plainlist|
}}
| sister =
| website = {{URL|https://www.cwtv.com/sports/}}
}}
CW Sports is the sports programming division of The CW that is responsible for sports broadcasts carried on the network.
The division was formed in 2023 with The CW's acquisition of broadcast rights to LIV Golf. The CW also airs college football and basketball games from the Atlantic Coast Conference, the NASCAR Xfinity Series, and the Inside the NFL studio program.
Unlike the sports divisions of the other major networks, CW Sports does not currently produce any of its own programming; its current properties are produced via partnerships with third-parties or a respective league's media department (such as NFL Films and Raycom Sports).
History
=Launch=
File:The CW Sports 2023 vector logo.svg
In August 2022, Nexstar Media Group acquired a majority stake in The CW network.{{cite web |date=August 15, 2022 |title=Nexstar Media Group to Acquire The CW Network |url=https://www.nexstar.tv/nexstar-media-group-to-acquire-the-cw-network/ |access-date=August 15, 2022 |work=Nexstar Media Group, Inc. |archive-date=August 15, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220815110032/https://www.nexstar.tv/nexstar-media-group-to-acquire-the-cw-network/ |url-status=live}} Nexstar focused on broadening the network's programming, including adding sports.{{cite web |date=July 30, 2023 |title=The CW is building sports programming from scratch |url=https://awfulannouncing.com/the-cw/the-cw-building-sports-programming-from-scratch.html |work=Awful Announcing |first=Ken |last=Fang |access-date=July 30, 2023}}
In January 2023, The CW agreed to a three-year broadcast deal with LIV Golf, the upstart professional golf tour financed by Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund, marking the first-ever national sports broadcasting contract for the network. Weekday rounds will be available on The CW's streaming apps, while weekend rounds will air on the broadcast network. The announcement led to the launch of the CW Sports division.{{cite news|url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2023/01/19/liv-golf-cw-tv-deal/|title=After a year of streaming, LIV Golf finds a television partner|first1=Ben|last1=Strauss|first2=Matt|last2=Bonesteel|newspaper=The Washington Post|date=January 19, 2023|access-date=January 19, 2023|archive-date=January 19, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230119162637/https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2023/01/19/liv-golf-cw-tv-deal/|url-status=live}} The network and main owner Nexstar were criticized by the National Press Club for participating in what it considers an attempt by the Saudi government to rehabilitate its image following the assassination of journalist Jamal Khashoggi.{{cite web|url=https://tvline.com/2023/01/19/cw-nexstar-liv-golf-partnership-controversy-saudi-arabia/|title=CW Owner Nexstar Called Out for Partnering With Saudi-Backed LIV Golf: 'Saudi Arabia Murdered a Journalist'|first=Matt Webb|last=Mitovich|work=TVLine|date=January 19, 2022|access-date=January 20, 2022|archive-date=January 20, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230120045241/https://tvline.com/2023/01/19/cw-nexstar-liv-golf-partnership-controversy-saudi-arabia/|url-status=live}}
On February 14, 2023, the network said its LIV Golf coverage would be carried in 100% of U.S. media markets. However, as existing contracts at the time only obligated CW affiliates to air prime time and Saturday morning E/I programming, some of them declined to carry LIV coverage. Among the refraining stations were the eight CW stations owned by CBS News and Stations, ostensibly due to CBS Sports' longstanding partnership with the competing PGA Tour. In many of the affected markets, LIV coverage would air on a Nexstar-owned station, a subchannel carrying a digital multicast network, or on another station not connected with The CW or Nexstar under a secondary affiliation agreement.{{cite web|url=https://deadline.com/2023/02/liv-golf-tour-clears-100-percent-of-cw-stations-1235259435/|title=LIV Golf Tour Clears 100 Percent Of US Markets (But Not All CW Stations)|first=Lynette|last=Rice|work=Deadline|date=February 14, 2023|access-date=February 15, 2023|archive-date=February 14, 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230214182515/https://deadline.com/2023/02/liv-golf-tour-clears-100-percent-of-cw-stations-1235259435/|url-status=live}}[https://deadline.com/2023/02/liv-cw-nexstar-mexico-tourney-ad-buys-stations-expectations-1235268778/ "LIV On CW: Behind Nexstar's Drive To Secure TV Stations For Controversial Golf League,"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230225000150/https://deadline.com/2023/02/liv-cw-nexstar-mexico-tourney-ad-buys-stations-expectations-1235268778/ |date=February 25, 2023 }} from Deadline, 2/24/2023 The CW declined to renew their rights to LIV Golf beyond the 2024 season, with Fox Sports becoming the new home for the golf tour.{{cite web|last=Carpenter|first=Josh|title=Sources: LIV in talks with Fox about broadcast deal|url=https://www.sportsbusinessjournal.com/Articles/2024/12/17/liv-golf-fox-potential-broadcasts|website=Sports Business Journal|date=December 17, 2024|accessdate=December 17, 2024}}
On February 17, 2023, The CW announced it had picked up the rights to 100 Days to Indy, a documentary series following the leadup to the 2023 Indianapolis 500 produced by Penske Entertainment and Vice Media.{{cite press release|url=https://www.indianapolismotorspeedway.com/news-multimedia/news/2023/02/17/02-17-100Days-Premiere|title=‘100 DAYS TO INDY’ TO PREMIERE APRIL 27 ON THE CW NETWORK|website=Indianapolis Motor Speedway|date=February 17, 2023|access-date=July 18, 2023}}
=Expansion=
Throughout summer 2023, The CW announced the acquisition of several sports properties. On June 7, The CW announced it acquired the rights to Inside the NFL, which was previously cable-exclusive to HBO and then Showtime, and streamed on Paramount+, for its 47th season, bringing the series to broadcast television for the first time. NFL Films continues to produce,{{cite web|last=Mitovich|first=Matt Webb|url=https://tvline.com/news/inside-the-nfl-release-date-september-2023-the-cw-1234996537/|title='Revamped' Inside the NFL to Air on The CW During the 2023 Football Season|website=TVLine|date=June 7, 2023|access-date=June 7, 2023}} with former Steelers safety Ryan Clark as the new host, and Channing Crowder, Jay Cutler, Chad Johnson and Chris Long as analysts.{{cite web|last1=Manfredi|first1=Lucas|last2=Cobb|first2=Kayla|title=The CW Taps Super Bowl Champion Ryan Clark As Host for 'Inside the NFL'|url=https://www.thewrap.com/inside-the-nfl-cw-ryan-clark-host/|website=TheWrap|date=August 30, 2023|access-date=August 30, 2023}}
On July 13, 2023, it was announced that The CW had acquired the exclusive broadcast rights to 50 Atlantic Coast Conference college football and basketball games each season through 2026–27; the broadcasts would be produced by Raycom Sports division, who previously produced syndicated ACC broadcasts. The package had been with Fox Sports Net before transitioning to Bally Sports in the 2021 season with the network's ownership transfer.{{cite web|last=Maas|first=Jennifer|title=The CW Scores Four-Season Rights to 50 ACC College Football and Basketball Games From Raycom, ESPN|url=https://variety.com/2023/tv/news/afc-football-basketball-games-the-cw-1235669752/|website=Variety|date=July 13, 2023}}
On July 28, 2023, the network and NASCAR announced a rights deal for the NASCAR Xfinity Series, rights previously spread among several cable and broadcast networks. The deal will encompass the 2025–2031 racing seasons.{{cite web|last=Long|first=Dustin|title=Xfinity races to air on CW Network starting in 2025|url=https://www.nbcsports.com/nascar/news/xfinity-races-to-air-on-cw-network-starting-in-2025|website=NBC Sports|date=July 28, 2023|access-date=September 5, 2023}} On April 11, 2024, It was announced that the deal was moved up to September 2024, with coverage beginning with the Food City 300 regular season finale race at Bristol Motor Speedway, with NBC Sports producing the broadcasts using its NASCAR on NBC staff.{{Cite web |date=2024-04-11 |title=NASCAR's new Xfinity TV deal with CW Network to get an early start |url=https://us.motorsport.com/nascar-xs/news/nascar-new-xfinity-tv-deal-with-cw-network-to-get-an-early-start-/10597631/ |access-date=2024-04-11 |website=us.motorsport.com |language=en}}
In January 2024, the division's name was amended to simply "CW Sports" as part of The CW's new brand identity. The rebranding had notably removed the article "The" from the network's logo and certain use cases (while maintaining "The CW" as its verbal branding); chief marketing officer Chris Spadaccini specifically cited the sports division as a context where "CW" worked better than "The CW".{{Cite web |last=Schneider |first=Michael |date=2024-01-12 |title=The CW Unveils New Branding Look, Dropping the ‘The’ and Embracing a ‘Hot Sauce’ Color Palette (EXCLUSIVE) |url=https://variety.com/2024/tv/news/the-cw-new-branding-logo-look-critics-choice-awards-1235870260/ |access-date=2024-01-14 |website=Variety |language=en-US}}
On May 14, 2024, The CW announced an agreement to carry 11 football games involving Oregon State University and Washington State University, the two remaining members of the Pac-12 Conference. https://www.sportspromedia.com/news/pac-12-washington-state-oregon-the-cw-fox/{{cite news |date=May 14, 2024 |title=Pac-12 football to be featured nationally across The CW Network & FOX Sports in 2024|publisher=Pac-12|url=https://pac-12.com/news/2024/5/14/pac-12-football-be-featured-nationally-across-cw-network-fox-sports-2024.aspx |access-date=May 14, 2024}}{{Cite web |date=2024-03-08 |title=Mailbag: The ongoing issues with Pac-12 MBB, Kliavkoff’s failures, future CFP access, ASU’s AD job and more |url=https://www.mercurynews.com/2024/03/08/mailbag-the-ongoing-issues-with-pac-12-mbb-kliavkoffs-failures-future-cfp-access-asus-ad-job-and-more/ |access-date=2024-03-09 |website=The Mercury News |language=en-US}} After simulcasting the 2023 edition as part of an agreement with the game's then-sponsor Barstool Sports,{{Cite web |last=Hayes |first=Dade |date=November 30, 2023 |title=The CW's Coverage Of College Football's Barstool Sports Arizona Bowl To Feature Dave Portnoy And Other Personalities Calling The Game |url=https://deadline.com/2023/11/the-cw-college-football-barstool-sports-arizona-bowl-dave-portnoy-1235644378/ |access-date=November 30, 2023 |website=Deadline |language=en-US}} CW Sports also acquired rights to the 2024 Arizona Bowl.{{Cite web |last=Neumann |first=Sam |date=2024-05-29 |title=2024 Snoop Dogg Arizona Bowl will air on The CW |url=https://awfulannouncing.com/college-football/the-cw-2024-arizona-bowl-snoop-dogg-gin-juice.html |access-date=2024-05-29 |website=Awful Announcing |language=en-US}}
On July 22, 2024, CW Sports announced that it would rebrand its football coverage as CW Football Saturday for the upcoming season, adding an eponymous studio show hosted by Mike Yam. The program, as well as the OSU/WSU games, are produced by Pac-12 Enterprises, which consists of the remaining staff of the Pac-12 Conference's former cable channel Pac-12 Network.{{Cite web |last=Lucia |first=Joe |date=2024-07-22 |title=The CW's college football talent lineup consists of many Pac-12 Network alumni |url=https://awfulannouncing.com/college-football/the-cw-cfb-acc-pac-12-thom-brennaman.html |access-date=2024-07-23 |website=Awful Announcing |language=en-US}}{{cite news |date=July 22, 2024 |title=The CW Network Sets Broadcast Crews and Adds Live Studio Show for 2024 ACC and Pac-12 College Football Games |url=https://www.sportsvideo.org/2024/07/22/the-cw-network-sets-broadcast-crews-and-adds-live-studio-show-for-2024-acc-and-pac-12-college-football-games/ |access-date=July 22, 2024 |publisher=Sports Video Group}}
The CW continued its sports expansion in late 2024 and early 2025. In September 2024, The CW aired the finals of the Chicago Open beach volleyball tournament as part of a one-off deal with the Association of Volleyball Professionals.{{cite news |date=August 22, 2024 |title= CW Sports Update: NASCAR, Bill Belichick, college football and AVP debuts
|url= https://cw39.com/cw/cw-sports-update-nascar-bill-belichick-college-football-and-avp-debuts/amp/ |access-date=August 22, 2024 |publisher=CW39 Houston}} On December 2024, CW added two new ACC women’s basketball games to its 2025 sports schedule, creating a pair of Sunday doubleheaders.{{cite web|last=Cahillane|first=Mollie|title=The CW adds more ACC women’s basketball to slate|url=https://www.sportsbusinessjournal.com/Articles/2024/12/12/cw-acc-womens-basketball|website=Sports Business Journal|date=December 12, 2024|access-date=December 17, 2024}} In the first quarter of 2025, CW Sports announced media rights agreements with Grand Slam Track{{cite web|title=GRAND SLAM TRACK™, FOUNDED BY FOUR-TIME OLYMPIC CHAMPION MICHAEL JOHNSON, ANNOUNCES MEDIA RIGHTS PARTNERSHIPS WITH THE CW NETWORK AND NBC SPORTS TO PRESENT ITS INAUGURAL SEASON|url=https://www.nbcsports.com/pressbox/press-releases/grand-slam-track-founded-by-four-time-olympic-champion-michael-johnson-announces-media-rights-partnerships-with-the-cw-network-and-nbc-sports-to-present-its-inaugural-season|date=February 3, 2025|access-date=February 3, 2025|website=NBC Sports Pressbox}} and the Association of Volleyball Professionals,{{cite web|title=Beach Volleyball Heads to CBS, CW in AVP Rights Pact|url=https://variety.com/2025/tv/news/beach-volleyball-cbs-cw-avp-tv-rights-1236334937/|last=Steinberg|first=Brian|work=Variety|date=March 12, 2025|access-date=March 12, 2025}} and acquired the HBCU All-Star Basketball game.{{cite web|title=HBCU All-Star Game Announces Game-Changing Partnership With The CW Network|url=https://www.si.com/college/hbcu/basketball/hbcu-all-star-game-announces-partnership-with-the-cw-network|work=Sports Illustrated|date=March 13, 2025|access-date=March 13, 2025}}
In April 2025, CW Sports renewed its agreement to air Pac-12 football games in the 2025 season, airing nine games featuring OSU and WSU.{{Cite web |last=Clinkscales |first=Jason |date=2025-04-29 |title=Pac-12 Inks Media Deal With the CW, CBS, ESPN for 2025 Football Season |url=https://www.sportico.com/leagues/college-sports/2025/pac-12-media-rights-cw-cbs-espn-1234850421/ |access-date=2025-05-04 |website=Sportico.com |language=en-US}}{{Cite web |date=2025-04-29 |title=Washington vs. Washington State in Apple Cup among two Pac-12 games airing in primetime on CBS in 2025 season |url=https://www.cbssports.com/college-football/news/washington-vs-washington-state-in-apple-cup-among-two-pac-12-games-airing-in-primetime-on-cbs-in-2025-season/ |access-date=2025-05-04 |website=CBSSports.com |language=en}} It also announced a media rights agreement with PBA Tour bowling.{{cite web|title=The CW Network and the PBA Strike a Deal for Multi-year Broadcast Agreement Set to Launch in 2026|url=https://www.pba.com/2025/april/cw-network-and-pba-strike-deal-multi-year-broadcast-agreement-set-launch-2026|website=PBA Tour|access-date=April 30, 2025|language=en}} In June 2025, The CW announced an agreement with the Savannah Bananas to air one Banana Ball game in July.{{cite web|title=The CW will broadcast Savannah Bananas baseball madness as network leans into live sports|url=https://www.latimes.com/entertainment-arts/tv/story/2025-06-03/savannah-bananas-baseball-cw-broadcast-television|website=Los Angeles Times|access-date=June 3, 2025|language=en}}
Programs
=Current live events=
- College football
- Atlantic Coast Conference (2023–present)
- 13 games per-season
- Pac-12 Conference (2024–present)
- Various games involving Oregon State University and Washington State University.
- Arizona Bowl (2023–present)
- College basketball
- Atlantic Coast Conference (2023–present)
- 28 men's basketball games per-season
- 11 women's basketball games per-season
- HBCU All-Star Basketball Game (2025–present)
- NASCAR Xfinity Series (2024–present)
- AVP Volleyball (2024; 2025–present)
- Grand Slam Track (2025–present)
=Upcoming events=
- One Savannah Bananas baseball game (2025)
- PBA Tour (from 2026)
=Studio programming=
- CW Football Saturday (2024–present)
- NASCAR Countdown Live (2024–present)
=Past programming=
- LIV Golf (2023–24)
- 100 Days to Indy (2023–24)
- Inside the NFL (2023–25)
Sports on local CW affiliates
{{see also|Historical Major League Baseball television broadcasters|List of historical NBA over-the-air television broadcasters}}
Outside of network programming, several CW affiliates have carried telecasts of basketball, football and in some cases, other collegiate sporting events (such as baseball or hockey) that are produced by syndicators, while a few carry games from local teams of major professional sports leagues such as Major League Baseball (the New York Mets on WPIX{{cite web|last=Spektor|first=Elle|title=Catch the 2023 Mets on PIX11|url=https://pix11.com/news/local-news/catch-the-2023-mets-on-pix11/|website=WPIX|date=February 13, 2023|access-date=September 5, 2023}}) and the NBA (the Los Angeles Clippers on KTLA{{cite web|last=Sternfield|first=Marc|title=L.A. Clippers basketball returns to free over-the-air TV on KTLA 5|url=https://ktla.com/sports/l-a-clippers-basketball-returns-to-free-over-the-air-tv-on-ktla-5/|website=KTLA|date=September 20, 2022|access-date=September 5, 2023}}).
= Affiliate preemptions =
Seventeen affiliates of The CW, eight of which were owned by CBS News and Stations, declined to carry the network's sports coverage of LIV Golf, which as weekend afternoon programming was not specified, nor mandated, under the network's affiliation contracts as of LIV Golf's debut on The CW. In all of the affected markets, the network has made secondary affiliation arrangements with other stations.{{cite web |url=https://deadline.com/2023/02/liv-golf-tour-clears-100-percent-of-cw-stations-1235259435/ |title=LIV Golf Tour Clears 100 Percent Of US Markets (But Not All CW Stations) |first=Lynette |last=Rice |work=Deadline |date=February 14, 2023 |access-date=February 15, 2023}}{{cite web|url=https://deadline.com/2023/02/liv-cw-nexstar-mexico-tourney-ad-buys-stations-expectations-1235268778/|title=LIV On CW: Behind Nexstar's Drive To Secure TV Stations For Controversial Golf League|first1=Lynette|last1=Rice|first2=Dade|last2=Hayes|work=Deadline|date=February 24, 2023|access-date=February 24, 2023}} Seven additional stations agreed to carry LIV Golf and subsequently affiliated with the CW on September 1, 2023: Nexstar-owned WPHL-TV, KRON-TV and WTTA; Hearst-owned KQCA; Gray Television-owned WPCH-TV; and Sinclair-owned WPNT and KUNS-TV.{{Cite web |last=Miller |first=Mark |date=June 14, 2023 |title=Nexstar Stations In Philadelphia, San Francisco, Tampa To Become CW Affils On Sept. 1 |url=https://tvnewscheck.com/business/article/nexstar-stations-in-philadelphia-san-francisco-tampa-to-become-cw-affils-on-sept-1/ |access-date=June 15, 2023 |website=TV News Check |language=en}}{{unbulleted list citebundle|{{Cite web |last=Owen |first=Rob |date=August 23, 2023 |title=TV Talk: The CW programming moves to WPNT-TV |url=https://triblive.com/aande/movies-tv/tv-talk-the-cw-programming-moves-to-wpnt-tv/ |access-date=August 24, 2023 |work=Pittsburgh Tribune-Review|via=TribLIVE.com |language=en-US}}|{{Cite press release |last=Alex |date=August 30, 2023 |title=The CW Network and Gray Television Expand and Extend Affiliation Partnership |url=https://www.nexstar.tv/the-cw-and-gray-expand-extend-affiliation-partnership/ |access-date=August 31, 2023 |website=Nexstar Media Group, Inc. |language=en-US}}}}{{Cite web |last=Lafayette |first=Jon |date=August 30, 2023 |title=WPCH Atlanta To Become CW Affiliate In Deal With Gray TV |url=https://www.nexttv.com/news/wpch-tv-atlanta-to-become-cw-affiliate-in-deal-with-gray-tv |access-date=August 30, 2023 |website=Broadcasting and Cable |language=en}}{{cite news|url=https://www.nexstar.tv/detroit-wmyd-to-become-cw-affiliate-nov-13/|title=Detroit's WMYD-TV To Become CW Affiliate On Monday, Nov. 13|website=Nexstar Media Group|date=November 6, 2023|accessdate=November 6, 2023}}
Several affiliates have also preempted coverage of the Xfinity Series in favor of local sports.{{Cite web|last=Weaver|first=Matt|title=Why isn’t NASCAR Xfinity races available in every market or the app, answered|url=https://sportsnaut.com/why-isnt-nascar-xfinity-races-available-in-every-market-or-the-app-answered/|website=Sportsnaut|date=March 13, 2025|access-date=March 15, 2025}}
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
- {{official website|https://www.cwtv.com/sports/}}
{{The CW}}
{{The CW programming}}
{{Sports television in the United States}}
{{College basketball on television}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:CW Sports}}
Category:Warner Bros. Discovery
Category:Television syndication packages
Category:Sports television in the United States
Category:Companies based in Los Angeles
Category:2023 establishments in California