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ESPN8 The Ocho
Founded2017; 7 years ago (2017)
ParentESPN

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,[1] some as far back as the 1990s.[2]

As of December 2023, ESPN8 The Ocho is also offered as a FAST channel on ABC's website and app.[3]

Origins

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The concept of ESPN8 originated as a fictional television channel in the 2004 film Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story, 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."[4][1]

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.[2]

Continuation

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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

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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.[1] 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

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2024

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August 1

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August 2

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  • 12:30 a.m. Red Bull Gameball Royale
  • 1:30 a.m. Ultimate Ninja World Series Finals
  • 2:00 a.m. Three Rivers Waitstaff Competition
  • 2:30 a.m. Sasquatch Uncut Beard and Mustache Competition
  • 3:00 a.m. to 6:00 a.m. encore programming from previous ESPN8 years
  • 6:00 a.m. Origins Gaming Tournament of Pieces Speed Puzzling
  • 6:30 a.m. Competitive Speed Cubing
  • 7:00 a.m. International Jump Rope Union World Championship
  • 7:30 a.m. Freestyle Trampoline Association World Championship
  • 8:00 a.m. Blade Masters: Axe and Knife Throwing
  • 9:00 a.m. FlingGolf All Star Skills Challenge
  • 10:00 a.m. BullShooter Invitational Shootout (electronic darts)
  • 11:00 a.m. OmegaBall
  • 12:00 noon Pop-a-Shot National Championship
  • 1:00 p.m. Viii Sports
  • 2:00 p.m. The Ocho Show (studio program)
  • 3:00 p.m. American Wiffleball Association All-Star Game
  • 4:00 p.m. USA Dodgeball All-Star Showcase
  • 5:00 p.m. TurfWars Adult Kickball Championship
  • 6:00 p.m. Major League Table Tennis Showcase
  • 7:00 p.m. Slippery Stairs
  • 8:00 p.m. American Cornhole League Armed Forces Event
  • 10:00 p.m. Silverback Breaking Invitational

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

August 3

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  • 1:30 a.m. Emerald Downs Corgi Races
  • 2:00 a.m. World Dog Surfing Championships: Best Waves
  • 2:30 a.m. to 6:00 a.m. encore programming from previous ESPN8 years
  • 6:00 a.m ZoneBall Clash
  • 6:30 a.m. Speed Chess Championship Final (from 2022)
  • 7:00 a.m. Microsoft Excel World Championship Finals
  • 7:30 a.m. ProSayulita SUP Open
  • 8:00 a.m. Battle of the Buoy 2
  • 8:30 a.m. National Putting Tour Final (from 2023)
  • 9:00 a.m. Forehand Strike U.S. Open
  • 9:30 a.m. SXY National Beach Tennis Invitational

(break in programming)

August 4

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  • 12:00 midnight Carjitsu Championship
  • 12:30 a.m. Ultimate Tire Wrestling
  • 1:00 a.m. Major League Paintball Atlantic City Open
  • 1:30 a.m. OneWheel World Championship Race for the Rail (from 2023)
  • 2:00 to 6:30 a.m. encore programming from previous ESPN8 years
  • 6:30 a.m. Teqball World Series from Tulsa, Oklahoma
  • 7:30 a.m. Roofball World Championships
  • 8:00 a.m. Hamlin Adult Big Wheel Races
  • 8:30 a.m. ESPN Presents: Never Tell Me the Odds "Top Sports Seen in Star Wars"

Source: [13]

See also

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References

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