About

FOX Deportes history, coverage, features

Fox Deportes is a Spanish-language sports network in USA, which was formerly known as Fox Sports en Español. It was first launched in 1996, and has since contributed to Fox’s extensive sports coverage aimed at its Hispanic audience. Its initial name was Fox Sports Americas; however, it underwent two rebranding exercises before settling with the Fox Deportes identity in 2010. The network is owned by Fox Sports Media Group and it broadcasts in 720p (HD) – though a downgraded 480i feed exists (SDTV).

Sports disciplines covered on Fox Deportes over the years have included American football, baseball, boxing, golf, motorsport, soccer and professional wrestling. The premium television station has also aired several college sports-related events. Popular TV shows that have been part of Fox Deportes’ programming line-up include Total Sports 360 and Punto Final.

Fox Deportes has enjoyed massive success in terms of TV ratings, thanks to its access to some of the largest sporting events in USA. In 2017, the channel made the headlines as its telecast of Game 7 in the World Series ended up being the most followed non-soccer event in the history of Spanish-language cable television, according to Nielsen Media Research.

As a regular recipient of Spanish-language broadcast rights secured by Fox Sports, Fox Deportes has been seen as the ultimate source for coverage of multiple soccer leagues and tournaments on US TV. Historically, soccer on Fox Deportes has included the English Premier League and FA Cup; German Bundesliga and DFL-Supercup; Italian Serie A and Mexican Liga MX, Ascenso MX and Copa MX; as well as the US Major League Soccer (MLS).



Fox Deportes has also held soccer broadcast rights for major continental club competitions in and outside of Europe, such as the UEFA Champions League, Europa League and Super Cup, CONMEBOL Copa Libertadores and Copa Sudamericana. Some TV deals the channel has benefited from were signed with a validation period spanning a decade or more. In 2015, it was announced that Fox had extended its US media rights agreements with FIFA, thus making the coverage of international FIFA Men’s and Women’s tournaments available on Fox Deportes up until at least 2026.

Fox Deportes can be streamed online and on both Android and iOS tablets and smartphones via partner OTT platforms. These include AT&T TV Now, FuboTV and PlayStation Vue.

In the past, Fox Deportes streams were available on the official Fox Sports GO app. In May 2019, however, Fox Sports GO was updated to host streams of regional sports content only. In the process, Fox Deportes’ online feed was moved to the FoxSports.com website and the official FOX Sports apps available on the Play Store and App Store. Users accessing Fox Deportes streams may be required to authenticate themselves via participating TV providers in USA.

Ownership

Parent company ownership and structure

FOX Deportes is owned and operated by Fox Sports Media Group.

Fox Sports Media Group, commonly referred to simply as Fox Sports, is a division of the Fox Broadcasting Company in the United States. It was first launched in 1994 and has since grown to operate a vast array of national and regional sports television channels, as well as subscription-based OTT services. The pay-TV broadcaster’s flagship channels include English-language cable networks such as Fox Sports 1, Fox Sports 2, Fox Soccer Plus and Big Ten Network. Its regional stations provide in-depth coverage for some of the biggest sports franchises in the U.S. As a holder of major multi-platform sports broadcast rights, however, Fox Sports has benefited a lot from the existence of its Spanish-language channel Fox Deportes, which it has used to rival other networks such as Univision’s TUDN, NBC’s Telemundo and ESPN Deportes—all of which are targeted at Hispanics. Soccer rights that Fox Sports has acquired over the years cover major international tournaments, including the FIFA World Cup, and even club competitions like the UEFA Champions League, Mexican Liga MX, and U.S. Major League Soccer. Some global media rights Fox Sports has inherited in the past were in fact negotiated through Fox International Channels, which oversees different Fox Sports networks operating in different continents. Some of the exclusive streams in USA may be available via online streaming service Fox Soccer Match Pass, whereas FoxSports.com and the official Fox Sports app serve to add to the viewers’ experience by providing more ways of watching the games telecast by the linear TV networks. Action from Fox Sports Regional Networks has a different digital home, nevertheless, and subscribers may enjoy their favorite regional teams’ games live and on demand on the Fox Sports GO platform. OTT services operated by Fox Sports in USA are usually available on the web for PC and Mac, on tablets and smartphones running Android and iOS, in addition to a wide range of smart TVs.