Sinclair Broadcast Group and Bally’s Corporation announced the official rebrand of its regional sports networks (RSNs) as Bally Sports, ushering in a new era in the way people watch and interact with live sports.
The rebrand comes on the heels of the November 2020 announcement of the enterprise-wide, long-term strategic partnership between Sinclair and Bally’s.
Different name, same favorite teams.
Today is a new beginning.
Welcome to Bally Sports. #HeartoftheFan pic.twitter.com/aPzqxBtaGK— Bally Sports (@BallySports) March 31, 2021
“Through our alliance with Bally’s and others, the RSNs will create innovative experiences for sports fans when rooting for their favorite local sports teams,” said Chris Ripley, President and CEO of Sinclair Broadcast Group. “The rebrand is the ideal first step as we further our efforts to thoroughly change the paradigm of the in-home sports experience, elevating how audiences view and interact with live sports content. We can’t wait to roll out even more game-changing options for fans everywhere in the future.”
In conjunction with the partnership, Bally’s acquired naming rights for all Sinclair RSNs, previously branded with the FOX name, and will leverage the brand to elevate each property for fans in a transformative way.
Beginning today, audiences across the country will experience some of the new changes just in time for the start of Major League Baseball on April 1.
In addition, an official Bally Sports app is expected to be released shortly thereafter, giving authenticated subscribers access to their favorite local teams and games in market.
George Papanier, President and Chief Executive Officer of Bally’s Corporation, said, “We are pleased to have achieved this important milestone in our transformative partnership with the RSNs and Sinclair. We look forward to the coming launch of the Bally Sports app, which we believe will be an engaging and creative platform for users across the nation, as well as our future plans to provide unmatched gamified sports content to local sports fans.”
The official rebrand is the first phase for the Bally Sports networks, with more exciting plans for upgrading these assets in the coming months and years.
Chief among these improvements is the gamification of sports, which will provide fans the opportunity to interact with games in real time, on a personalized level, creating a new lean-in experience for fans across the country.
Upon rebranding, the Sinclair-owned and operated RSN portfolio will now include the following 19 network brands:
Bally Sports Arizona; Bally Sports Detroit; Bally Sports Florida; Bally Sports Great Lakes; Bally Sports Kansas City; Bally Sports Indiana; Bally Sports Midwest; Bally Sports New Orleans; Bally Sports North; Bally Sports Ohio; Bally Sports Oklahoma; Bally Sports San Diego; Bally Sports SoCal; Bally Sports South; Bally Sports Southeast; Bally Sports Southwest; Bally Sports Sun; Bally Sports West; and, Bally Sports Wisconsin.
