The USL is on the verge of announcing a new broadcast deal with ESPN, sources tell The Athletic. The agreement would add a three-year extension to their current setup, which has all of the league’s games streaming on ESPN+ with matches regularly being shown on the ESPN family of channels.



The sources also specified that ESPN will pay the USL a rights fee in the low seven-figure range. Financials were not released for the previous deal (termed as a “partnership” when it was announced), but it’s believed to have either been free content for ESPN or had the league paying a small amount to show its matches. However, the new deal serves as a dependable source of revenue that can be shared among the league’s clubs. Game broadcasts will continue to be produced by the league.



The deal keeps both the second-division Championship and third-division League One on an easily accessible platform through the 2022 season. In 2019, a total of 26 USL...