About

SEC Network history, coverage, features

SEC Network is an American 24/7 television sports network created to cover collegiate sports sanctioned by the Southeastern Conference (SEC). Founded in 2014, the network is owned by the major American sports media company ESPN, itself a joint venture of The Walt Disney Company and Hearst Communications.

SEC Network was announced in May 2013 after ESPN struck a 20-year broadcast deal with the Southeastern Conference, lasting until 2034. The network officially launched in August of the following year, alongside a digital platform, SEC Network+ (SECN+).

SEC Network premiered with SEC Now, the platform’s news program, while the first live regular-season football games televised were Temple vs. Vanderbilt and Texas A&M vs. South Carolina. Two years after its creation, the network achieved an impressive milestone, reaching an estimated 70 million U.S. television households by August 2016.

SEC Network broadcasts over 20 sports staged by the Southeastern Conference, including football, baseball, basketball, soccer, and more. In addition to televised live and recorded games, the network delivers complementary content such as news and analysis programs.

The network has also aired original programming, including SEC Nation, a traveling pre-game show, and True South, a non-sports program promoting the local cuisine and history of the Southeast. Non-televised Southeastern Conference games are streamed by the network’s digital platform, SEC Network+, which is available on ESPN+, the ESPN app, and ESPN.com.

The network has enjoyed wide carriage on major TV providers both within and outside the SEC markets. AT&T U-verse was the first to pick up the broadcaster, with Dish Network and Cox Communications following a few months later. DirecTV introduced SEC Network to its offerings after striking a carriage deal in August 2014, with Verizon FiOS following suit later that same month for the Texas and Florida service areas.