ESPN Names Aviva Premiership Rugby Host
ESPN has announced that Mark Durden-Smith, who has covered rugby union for more than six years, is to host the broadcaster’s Aviva Premiership Rugby coverage next season alongside Austin Healey.
Durden-Smith is joined by experienced sports presenter, Sarra Elgan, who joins ESPN as rugby reporter completing ESPN’s rugby presenting team.
The broadcaster has also revealed it will screen a weekly rugby highlights programme, airing every Monday at 8pm from 6th September, as it heads into its inaugural season of live coverage of the domestic rugby top-flight.
ESPN’s first live televised match of the season, at 2.00pm on Saturday 4th September, features a clash between the runners-up of the last two Premiership Finals, Saracens and London Irish.
Durden-Smith and Elgan join Nick Mullins, the former BBC journalist who has covered the last four Rugby World Cups, who has joined ESPN as chief rugby commentator.
Austin Healey, the former England international, will be ESPN’s lead analyst for its Premiership Rugby coverage. Completing the line-up, former England and Leicester forward Ben Kay will be ESPN’s rugby co-commentator.
In December 2009, ESPN and Premier Rugby agreed a multi-year deal for exclusive live rights to 43 matches per season from Premiership Rugby. Beginning next season and running through to the 2012-2013 season, the deal includes exclusive live coverage of the Premiership Rugby Final and one of the two semi-final matches. The agreement also provides highlight rights for use on ESPN digital media such as ESPNScrum.com and ESPN.co.uk.
ESPN plans to cover all of its 43 matches each season on-site at the grounds themselves.
Premiership Rugby adds to ESPN’s established heritage of rugby coverage in the UK and worldwide. In the UK, ESPN delivers live coverage of French Top 14 Orange rugby. ESPN also has an agreement to show archive matches and footage from each of the six Rugby World Cup tournaments to date on ESPN Classic in the UK, Europe, Middle East and Africa. Furthermore, the sports media company holds rights to broadcast the RBS Nations across Australasia, Japan, Caribbean and much of Latin America.
