What is the best channel for sports?

The Best Channel for Sports

It is such a daunting task especially when you consider the vast number of sports channels that are available in cable or satellite TV nowadays. Every network does have its advantages and disadvantages based on the type of sports and teams which the fans are interested in. In this article, the author will look at some of the main contenders for the best sports channel and explain why each is special.

ESPN

ESPN is the clear front runner; it is the worldwide leader in sports. They cover a massive load of live events from each of the primary sports: NFL, MLB, NBA, NHL, college football and basketball, soccer, tennis and others. In addition to their live games, some of the best studio shows are hosted by iconic talents such as Stephen A. Smith on First Take. To date, SportsCenter continues to deliver highlights and analysis in the form of a cultural touchstone. It also has 30 for 30 sports documentaries that are interesting about personalities in the sporting world. Because of all the rights deals across sports, ESPN gives the fans more live games and more content related to a particular sport than any other network.

NFL Network

It is not a secret that NFL Network is a perfect fit for all those who are really into professional football. Their coverage entails live regular season games on Thursday night, all the games on Sunday night in the second half of the season, and NFL preseason and NFL Scouting Combine. Besides games, they have great studio shows explaining the analysis, tops and news around the entire year. Whether you’re getting your first taste of the team in training camp reports during the summer or getting ready for the draft in the spring, NFL Network never lets the football die for its viewers. It is the most direct line of communication for all the die-hard football fans.

MLB Network

As for the NFL Network, the MLB Network is its counterpart focusing on American baseball dedicated 24/7. The regular season games, the Spring Training, the playoffs and the All-Star Game are available for baseball fans. It supplements the content with studio shows including MLB Tonight, baseball news updates throughout the day, historic shows, and MLB Network Showcase shows. If you need player and manager interviews, analysis of your favorite team or assistance in your fantasy baseball draft, MLB Network has baseball fans set for life.

NBA TV

Although NBA TV does not air many live games because NBA League Pass has rights to most of them, it is among the best channels for basketball lovers. They include Overtime and GameTime studio shows at night to discuss all the league events with highlights and sometimes with current players. There is also more historical content where viewers can watch past NBA moments, past games and a lot more. Offseason programming on NBA TV includes NBA Draft, free agency movement and Las Vegas Summer League. Despite this, the channel succeeds in providing those basketball lovers with their fix of hoops, all year round.

NHL Network

The target audience of the show, the hockey fans, would certainly be aware of the fact that NHL Network is the best for watching hockey on television. It offers nightly regular season games, pre and post match coverage, daily news updates and stories, and old NHL clips and archives. As the hockey season begins with the first face-off in early October and ends with the last chime of the Stanley Cup Final in June, NHL Network takes the viewer into the depth of everything related to the league. Whether it is the promising newcomers, the gigantic transactions or the still young but already very experienced players – NHL Network provides fans with the information they require about ice hockey.

The Verdict

As we have seen there are good arguments for all the mentioned sports channels but if we look at the volume of content and availability of live events, ESPN is at a different level. Of course, the other sports networks do go very detail in their coverage of their respective sports. When it comes to rights deals for live events, nobody can beat ESPN; the channel has the rights to all the major sports played in America and across the globe. Whether it is Monday Night Football with John Madden, playoff basketball games, the College World Series, major tennis Grand Slam events, and much, much more, ESPN has it all. Combined with all the news coverage, analysis shows and documentaries, ESPN remains the best over-all channel for sports.

So there I was – it was only right that the other sports channels could be given your attention for the specific sports but ESPN remained and still is the worldwide sports channel with the most coverage on every league. However, if this was the only opportunity to have a sports channel then the answer is obvious. Comparing the above points, ESPN is the best channel dedicated to sports.