ESPN is running a 28-hour fantasy football marathon during the Olympics. When does it finally come to an end?
Fantasy football is obviously one of the biggest pastimes in America right now. Every year, millions of people play fantasy football, sometimes spending hours on their teams each day. Beginning at 7pm ET on Monday, ESPN will be dedicating hours to it as well — actually, 28 hours.
The sports network will run the program during the Olympics, as they are limited to how much time they can dedicate towards the Games. NBC owns the exclusive broadcast rights to the Olympics, so ESPN will use the power of fantasy football to pull people away from the channel. It is an idea that is so crazy, it just might work.
The marathon of coverage will end at 11:00pm ET on Tuesday night.
Coverage will begin with a five-hour “SportsCenter” broadcast, where ESPN will rank the top fantasy football players for the upcoming season. Tuesday at midnight, Sara Walsh will host a three-hour show called “Fantasy Football Now.”
The coverage will then turn to Jalen Rose and David Jacoby, who will host a three-hour “Fantasy Football Kickoff,” show beginning at 3:00am ET on Tuesday. Throughout Tuesday, ESPN will have all of its shows be fantasy football-themed, including radio and television programs.
At 7:00pm ET on Tuesday, there will be a four-hour fantasy football draft, which will bring the coverage to a close.
It is going to be very hard to compete with the Olympics, who consistently pull down the most viewership when it airs every four years. The 2016 Rio Olympics are must-see TV, but ESPN’s timing could not be better.
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The coverage will begin when some of the biggest names at the Olympics are finished. Usain Bolt, Michael Phelps, Katie Ledecky, and Serena Williams are all some of the marquee talent that have finished their events.
While 28 hours of fantasy football may be crazy, it may actually work.