Fox Sports has commemorated the relaunch of its portfolio of regional sports networks (RSN) under the casino operator Bally’s Corporation brand with a promotional video release – ‘Bally Sports – The Story Continued’.
After penning a ‘landmark’ naming-rights agreement in November, it was announced at the beginning of the year that the Sinclair Broadcast Group – the parent company of Fox – and gambling firm Bally’s would rebrand the Fox RSNs, which includes coverage of 42 teams across a handful of leagues, such as MLB, NBA and NHL.
The promotional campaign, dubbed ‘Heart of the Fan’, marks the relaunch of the 19 network brands on 31 March. For example, Fox Sports Detroit, which is included in the RSN portfolio, will transform as Bally Sports Detroit.
“The Fox Sports regional networks are now Bally Sports,” the video said. “Sports connect us all, so our next chapter is for you.”
The deal also includes the reconstruction of the Fox Sports Go mobile app, which will be replaced by a streaming app in a bid to ‘make watching sports similar to playing a video game’, according to Sinclair President and Chief Executive, Chris Ripley.
The Bally Sports networks will be available on the same channel numbers as the Fox Sports networks, whilst the Fox Sports app will also update on the final day of the month.
“Rolling out Bally’s iconic logo across Sinclair’s regional sports networks is a rewarding first step in a transformational partnership that is going to revolutionise the US sports betting, gaming and media industries,” said George Papanier, Bally’s President and Chief Executive, at the time of the announcement last year.
“We look forward to integrating Bally’s unique content, including the award-winning daily fantasy sports platform we are acquiring from Monkey Knife Fight, across Sinclair’s live game day coverage and providing unrivaled sports gamification on a national scale.”
The agreement also sees the Fox name, logo and colours replaced by Bally’s branding, and it is expected that gambling-related content will be integrated into broadcast and digital platforms.
