ESPN and the Arena Football League (AFL) have agreed to a multi-year agreement beginning in 2014. The new deal grants ESPN rights to more than 10 regular season and postseason games on its television networks per year, including ArenaBowl and one conference championship game, as well as 75 or more games annually on ESPN3, ESPN's live multi-screen sports network. ESPN's video player will also be available on the AFL website, ArenaFootball.com.
The relationship between the AFL and ESPN began more than two decades ago when ESPN televised the very first ArenaBowl live in 1987. Since then, ESPN televised a combination of AFL regular season and playoff games for five years (1995-99), AFL playoff games from 2000-02 and both regular season and playoff games from 2007-08. Additionally, ABC presented the ArenaBowl for five years from 1998-2002. "ESPN has a long history of working with the Arena Football League and this new agreement is a great opportunity to showcase the AFL as part of our year-round commitment to football," said Matthew Volk, ESPN director, programming and acquisitions. "The AFL's return to ESPN is the latest example of the strides our sport has made in recent years," said AFL Commissioner Jerry B. Kurz. "Having the ArenaBowl on the ESPN family of networks for years to come puts our Championship game alongside some of the most prominent events in television."Videos