ESPN8 The Ocho explained

ESPN8 The Ocho
Parent:ESPN

ESPN8 The Ocho is an annual special program block showcasing seldom-seen obscure sports that airs on the networks of ESPN Inc.

The Ocho consists of lesser-known, unconventional and humorous sports and other competitions with some athletic or physical skill component, including Pop-A-Shot, roller derby, crossnet, Quidditch, trampoline dodgeball, air hockey, darts, disc golf, kabaddi, soccer, chess boxing, bed races, sport stacking, electrician games, dodge juggle, death diving, cherry pit spitting, robot fighting, firefighter games, cow chip throwing, pizza dough throwing, frog jumping, cheese rolling, grocery bag competitions, extreme pogo, shuffleboard, breakdancing, and more. It is traditionally aired in early August, the eighth month of the year. Much of the programming consists of previously recorded content and reruns previously aired on the ESPN networks, some as far back as the 1990s.

, ESPN8 The Ocho is also offered as a FAST channel on ABC's website and app.[1]

Origins

The concept of ESPN8 originated as a fictional television channel in the 2004 film , in which it was a full-time channel showcasing obscure competitions that are "almost a sport" (its name being a comic exaggeration, since at the time there were only four linear ESPN channels—ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNEWS and ESPN Classic; the fifth, ESPNU, launched a year after the film). Its nickname "The Ocho" (Spanish for "eight") was a play on ESPN2's 1990s nickname "The Deuce."[2] [3]

Starting August 8, 2017, ESPN paid homage to its lampooned portrayal in Dodgeball by airing a day-long "ESPN8: The Ocho" marathon on its college sports channel ESPNU as a way to fill airtime on the channel during the collegiate offseason. The 2017 airing was a success, prompting ESPN to repeat the block the next year, this time licensing the Dodgeball film from 20th Century Fox for inclusion in the block (ESPN's parent company would buy 20th Century Fox the next year); it made some other adjustments to the 2018 schedule, including heavier editing to shorten each sport's time slot, hoping to accommodate short attention spans.[4]

Continuation

Due to a lack of live sports programming during the COVID-19 pandemic, ESPN announced on March 22, 2020, that it would reprise the stunt earlier than scheduled on ESPN2.[5] It did it on May 2, 2020, on ESPN, and then August 8, 2020, on ESPN2 as well as the Big Screen in Fortnite Party Royale.[6] A collection of sports that were featured on ESPN8, as well as the ESPN8 broadcast on these said networks, were available on the ESPN app.

Beginning in 2022, the majority of "OCHO Day" programming are events broadcast live from two venues in Rock Hill, South Carolina – The Rock Hill Sports & Event Center and Manchester Meadows.[7] [8] Rock Hill is a suburb of Charlotte, North Carolina, where ESPN has production facilities for ESPNU and the SEC Network.[9] [10]

The event was held again on ESPN2 on August 3, 2023.[11] [12] For 2024, to celebrate "ocho years of The Ocho," the block expanded to four days, with the Savannah Bananas as the tent-pole; all three games of the team's Louisville, Kentucky series were telecast live in prime time, including the second game on ESPN's flagship channel, the first time the ESPN8 brand has expanded there.[13]

In December 2023, ESPN launched an ESPN8 free ad-supported streaming television (FAST) channel on ABC.com and the ABC app.[14] In April 2024, the FAST channel launched in Canada under the name TSN The Ocho.

Impact

The tongue-in-cheek inclusion of such sports on ESPN's schedule has led to increased exposure opportunities for those sports, which have performed well for ESPN. ESPN added a cornhole tournament airing in July 2018 outside the block, which it noted outdrew the WNBA All-Star Game, regular season Major League Baseball games and the final stage of the Tour de France among the key demographic of men age 18 to 49.[3] The inclusion of the Excel World Championships, an eSport that involves using spreadsheet programs in a competition to solve a series of problems, helped give the contest mainstream attention and credibility.[15]

ESPN8 appeared in the 2024 TV series Knuckles as the in-universe broadcaster of a bowling tournament, with commentators played by Rob Huebel and Paul Scheer.[16]

Scheduling

2024

August 1

August 2

Game 2 of the Savannah Bananas/Party Animals Louisville series aired on ESPN under the ESPN8 brand.

August 3

(break in programming)

August 4

Source: [13]

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Donnelly . Jim . December 18, 2023 . Watch Free: The 'ESPN8: The Ocho' Unlocked Channel Is Now Streaming with No Sign-In Needed! . December 18, 2023 . ABC.com.
  2. News: ESPN is creating ESPN8: 'The Ocho' for one glorious day . SB Nation . 2017-08-18 . August 18, 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180818054220/https://www.sbnation.com/lookit/2017/8/3/16091446/espn8-the-ocho-real-tv-channel . live .
  3. News: Rosenthal . Phil . 'ESPN8: The Ocho' to replace ESPNU — if only for a day . Chicago Tribune . 2017-08-28 . August 13, 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180813234434/http://www.chicagotribune.com/sports/breaking/ct-espn8-the-ocho-espnu-20170804-story.html . live .
  4. Web site: Steinberg . Brian . August 8, 2018 . Bold strategy, Cotton: Inside ESPN's crazy plans to turn 'The Ocho' into a business . August 8, 2018 . Variety . August 8, 2018 . https://web.archive.org/web/20180808123944/https://variety.com/2018/tv/news/bold-strategy-cotton-espn-the-ocho-business-1202899209/ . live .
  5. Web site: 2020-03-19 . ESPN8 'The Ocho' is back, normally you have to pay double for that kind of action, Cotton . 2020-03-19 . AL.com . March 20, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200320112315/https://www.al.com/sports/2020/03/espn8-the-ocho-is-back-normally-you-have-to-pay-double-for-that-kind-of-action-cotton.html . live .
  6. Web site: ESPN Celebrates Four Years of ESPN 8: The Ocho by Streaming in Fortnite’s Party Royale on August 8. August 4, 2020.
  7. Web site: City of Rock Hill, South Carolina . City Calendar - ESPN8: The Ocho . cityofrockhill.com . Granicus . 13 July 2024.
  8. Web site: Pascucci . Robert . Exploring the wacky world of ESPN's OCHO day in Rock Hill . South Carolina Educational Television . South Carolina ETV Commission . 13 July 2024.
  9. Web site: Brooks . Amanda . Go (Day) Long With Alyssa Lang In ESPN’s Buzzing Charlotte Studios . ESPN Front Row . ESPN . 13 July 2024.
  10. Web site: Spotlight on ESPN's Charlotte Office . Life at Disney (powered by Disney Careers) . Disney.com . 13 July 2024.
  11. Web site: 'ESPN8: The Ocho' bringing back 'seldom seen sports': How to watch cornhole, corgi races. USA TODAY.
  12. Web site: How to watch ESPN8: The Ocho, 2023 edition. August 2, 2023. ESPN.com.
  13. Web site: Blum . Lily . 2024-07-18 . Ocho Years of the Ocho! ESPN8: The Ocho Returns as the Number One Destination for Seldom-Seen Sports . 2024-08-12 . ESPN Press Room U.S. . en-US.
  14. Web site: Lucia . Joe . 2023-12-20 . ESPN8: The Ocho is now live as ESPN's first FAST channel . 2023-12-21 . Awful Announcing . en-US.
  15. Web site: Pierce . David . 2023-08-03 . Excel’s esports revolution is coming back to ESPN this week . 2023-10-12 . The Verge . en.
  16. Web site: Knight . Rosie . April 27, 2024 . Knuckles Pays Homage to Hollywood Comedies Throughout the Ages . May 5, 2024 . IGN.

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "ESPN8 The Ocho".

Except where otherwise indicated, Everything.Explained.Today is © Copyright 2009-2024, A B Cryer, All Rights Reserved. Cookie policy.