ESPN to Provide Worldwide Distribution of Indy 500

ESPN, the exclusive worldwide television representative of the IndyCar Series and the Indianapolis 500, will televise the Indianapolis 500 LIVE to 166 countries and territories outside the United States. ESPN’s international networks will televise the race throughout Latin America, the Middle East, Africa, Asia and the Pacific Rim. The green flag falls on the 33-car starting field of the Greatest Spectacle in Racing at 1 p.m. Sunday, May 27, at Indianapolis Motor Speedway.

ESPN is also responsible for the global syndication of the Indy 500 for LIVE broadcast in Belgium, Bosnia/Serbia, Baltic States, Canada, Cyprus, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Russia, Spain, and the U.K. In addition, ESPN will distribute the Indy 500 to the American Forces Network, which serves military personnel stationed in 176 countries and U.S. territories. In the United States, the Indy 500 will be telecast live to a nationwide audience on ESPN on ABC. When combined with ESPN’s international distribution efforts, the estimated worldwide total for the Indy 500 includes more than 200 countries and more than 442 million households worldwide.

ESPN will have two separate on-site teams broadcasting the race in Spanish and English. Spanish-language announcers will be veteran broadcaster Andrés Agulla and Alex Pombo; Gary Lee and Larry Rice will provide commentary in English. Live programming from Indianapolis Motor Speedway will begin Wednesday, May 24, with SportsCenter segments for ESPN in Latin America. ESPN’s coverage will peak at 12:30 p.m. ET Sunday, May 28, with a 30-minute special edition of its auto racing show RPM Semanal, telecast in Spanish in Latin America, and pre-race show Before They Go Green, telecast in English on ESPN networks in Africa, the Middle East and the Pacific Rim.

In addition to the broad global television distribution of the race, this year’s Indy 500 also has a particular international appeal. Of the 33 starting drivers, 13 are from countries other than the United States, including Brazil, United Kingdom, New Zealand, Japan, South Africa, Scotland, France, the Netherlands and Venezuela.

ESPNdeportes.com, the company’s Spanish-language Web site, also will provide comprehensive coverage of the Indy 500 by offering live Real Time results of race action, daily columns from ESPN reporters and commentators, chats with ESPN personalities, a full pre- and post-race photo gallery, video clips and more.

ESPN International is a division of ESPN, Inc., “The Worldwide Leader in Sports". ESPN International has evolved to include ownership — in whole or in part — of 32 television networks, as well as a variety of ancillary businesses, which together extend the ESPN brand to more than 190 countries and territories. ESPN International network programming is transmitted in 15 languages (Arabic, Cantonese, Dutch, English, French, German, Hindi, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Mandarin, Polish, Portuguese, Spanish and Turkish.) ESPN International business entities include television, radio, print, Internet, wireless, consumer products and event management.