Lindsey Komson

Let’s talk about sports simulcasts.

What’s a simulcast, you may ask?

A simulcast is a broadcast of an event or program on two or more channels or mediums at the same time. So, a sports simulcast is when a sporting event is available for viewing on several channels.

Fans can choose to watch a sporting event on their local or national broadcast, as per usual, but when these special simulcasts are available, they take the world and the internet by storm.

CRO of Genius Sports Josh Linforth explains that “the future of sports viewing isn’t just about who wins or loses, it’s about how fans choose to experience the game.”

Not only are these broadcasts great for individual fans, but each one can “create its own micro-community” of fans. With an increasing amount of people watching sports with a “second screen” nowadays, fans watching these broadcasts can be part of a community online to discuss the broadcast and share in major moments together.

These are some of the recent simulcasts that have drawn public interest as of late:

Nickelodeon SlimeTime

Nickelodeon did a simulcast of Super Bowl LVIII, complete with appearances from SpongeBob SquarePants and Patrick Star. It was extremely well-liked, especially by those who might not understand football and the regular terminology used by NFL broadcasters. Especially for a big event like the Super Bowl, this alternative, entertainment-focused broadcast allowed those who don’t necessarily pay attention to football to enjoy it. Not only was the game being explained more than a regular broadcast would, but it included fun cultural references and appearances from favorite childhood characters.

NBA Dunk The Halls

Christmas Day is a huge day for basketball, and ESPN/Disney took the opportunity to bring the basketball games to an audience beyond the die-hard fans. In addition to broadcasting the New York Knicks vs. San Antonio Spurs game broadcast on ESPN, it was broadcast on ESPN2, Disney+, and ESPN+ with sideline reported Daisy Duck. Christmas is a day for families, so the animated broadcast featuring Mickey and Minnie Mouse, Donald Duck, Goofy, and Pluto engaged younger audiences watching with their families.

ESPN Sunday Night Baseball: Statcast Edition

Baseball and statistics go hand-in-hand, so what could be better than feeding fans the stats behind the game as it’s going on? Last year, ESPN introduced “a reimagined approach to [their] Statcast-driven content, featuring multiple data implementations such as a pitch predictor, Statcast metrics of the pitch itself, and avatar-based Statcast replays.” For special events like the Home Run Derby and the Little League Classic, ESPN does event-specific statcast broadcasts. The Little League Classic broadcast will be “led by an all-teenage broadcast team.”

These individualized simulcasts are great for community, but also for marketing. Linforth explains that simulcasts present “brands with unprecedented opportunities for targeted messaging and authentic engagement…leading to strong affinities for the brands who choose to think creatively.” Watching broadcasts tailored to a certain demographic’s interests creates a relationship between them that hopefully will extend beyond the gameday.

Simulcasts are great for TV ratings, but they’re also great for marketing and building relationships with fans.