Polo will reach a larger audience next year following an agreement between the sport’s US governing body and entertainment brand ESPN.
The finals of the top seven US and World Championship polo events in 2022 will air on ESPN’s channels ESPN2, ESPNU or be streamed live on ESPN3.
The deal struck by Global Polo Entertainment, the entertainment and media subsidiary of US Polo Association Global Licensing (USPAGL) that manages U.S. Polo Assn, the official brand of the United States Polo Association (USPA) grants ESPN the domestic rights to the seven tournaments.
It will begin with the 2022 Gauntlet of Polo, the No.1 rated US Open Women’s Polo Championship and the 2022 FIP World Polo Championship on ESPN3 and ESPN2, for the first time. The semi-finals and finals of the 100th Men’s and Women’s National Intercollegiate Championship will air on ESPNU. This agreement also includes the 30-minute made-for-television series World of Polo presented by U.S. Polo Assn, and which will be available on ESPN’s view-on-demand platform.
J. Michael Prince, President and CEO of USPA Global Licensing, said the goal of the “symbiotic and historic deal” was to reach more sports fans in the US and attract new audiences by delivering more polo sport and lifestyle content in new ways.
“We look forward to broadening access to the amazing sport of polo with some of the most exciting polo tournaments in the world now being broadcast by ESPN, the nation’s leader in sports content.”
The broadcast schedule for the 2022 season will be announced before the start of the Gauntlet of Polo tournament series, beginning with the C.V. Whitney Cup final on Sunday, February 27, followed by the USPA Gold Cup and culminating with the US Open Polo Championship, recognized as the most prestigious polo tournament in North America.