El Paso Locomotive FC and Liga MX's FC Juarez are set to share the same network this year after the USL Championship's multiyear broadcast agreement with Televisa Univision to air games. | Photo courtesy El Paso Locomotive FC
From the moment the announcement dropped, the buzz the United Soccer League’s partnership with Televisa Univision to bring the USL Championship to TUDN – the biggest Spanish-language sports network in the United States – was evident.
Woah. This is HUGE https://t.co/Q3jaD9Bhma
— The USL Show (@theUSLshow) June 12, 2024
Awesome news from the league.
— Orange & Black SoccerCast (@OCSC_SoccerCast) June 12, 2024
Two matches for @orangecountysc will be on TUDN, including this weekend against @SwitchbacksFC and September 25 against @PHXRisingFC #ForCounty #JuntosMásFuertes https://t.co/mjwleWCNzE
Una muy buena noticia. Hace años que venimos empujando para que el contenido en español sea serio desde @USL_HQ.
— Chris Kofman (@Chris_Kofman) June 12, 2024
Esta es la movida correcta! https://t.co/jj9UDBp89G
Folks, this is not a small thing. Bravo the the league for making this happen! https://t.co/gHz8GfG2Mn
— The Center Forward Podcast (@TheCenterForwa1) June 12, 2024
There’s good reason for that. But here’s why it’s an even bigger deal than it appears at first glance.
TUDN is without question the best-known – and most-watched – Spanish-language sports network in the United States, featuring not only season-round Liga MX coverage but also some of the sports biggest events. This summer’s Copa America and UEFA European Championships? You’ll find them both here as well as the UEFA Champions League, Concacaf Nations League, Gold Cup, and Concacaf Champions Cup.
The USL Championship is now going to be alongside those tournaments and leagues, bringing forward cross-promotional opportunities and bringing the league before fans who might never have considered watching before. That’s huge for the USL’s potential future growth.
There’s been a clear goal for the United Soccer League as it has added new broadcast partners this year. Renewing its agreement with ESPN, adding a new partnership with CBS Sports that brought games to network television for the first time – say nothing of more games on broadcast networks and its soccer-specific free-streaming service CBS Sports Golazo Network – fulfilled those goals for English-language audiences.
By adding Televisa Univision to that package – and a collection of games that should take the league past 50 games on broadcast networks this season – the USL continues to fulfill its ultimate goal.
“Our vision was very simple, and that was to be the most widely available league, from a soccer standpoint, in this country,” USL Chief Commercial Officer Court Jeske told Sports Business Journal’s Austin Karp last month.
One of the important facets of USL’s agreement with Televisa Univision is it’s another multiyear deal. That mirrors the agreements already struck with CBS Sports and ESPN, giving longtime fans of the USL Championship and those that are jumping on board now the knowledge of where you’re going to be able to tune in to watch the best the league has to offer over the coming seasons.
Remember, you can always find where to watch games in the USL Championship, League One and Jägermeister Cup on national and local networks through our weekly listings guide and on the league’s scores page, so you’ll never have to miss a minute of the games featuring your favorite club or players whenever or wherever they’re on the air.