FuboTV said that its Fubo Sports Network linear channel has launched on Amazon’s ad-supported Freevee streaming platform.

Fubo said Fubo Sports Network is now available on 155 million devices across streaming platforms.

“With the launch of Fubo Sports Network on Amazon Freevee, we’re bringing our athlete-driven programming and original series to more eyeballs than ever before,” said Pamela Duckworth, head of Fubo Networks and originals, FuboTV. “There is a growing appetite for the voice of the athlete and our goal is to connect with fans wherever they choose to consume content. Platforms like Freevee allow us to do just that at no extra cost for our audiences. We’re delighted to join Freevee’s impressive lineup of premium channels.”

Fubo Sports Network recently expanded its original programming with the addition of two new series, Airing It Out with Housh and Scandrick and The Young Person Basketball Podcast with R.J. Hampton. Those shows joined No Chill with Gilbert Arenas and Getcha Popcorn Ready with T.O. and Hatch.

Fubo said Fubo Sports Network increased its viewership by 121% in September year over year. The channel is available on LG Channels, Samsung TV Plus, The Roku Channel, Vizio WatchFree Plus, Tubi, Plex, Xumo and as part of FuboTV’s subscription packages. ■

FuboTV’s free streaming channel, Fubo Sports Network, said it will be adding two new original series to its lineup.

Airing It Out with Housh and Scandrick, featuring former NFL players T.J. Houshmandzadeh and Orlando Scandrick, will premiere on September 6.

The Young Person Basketball Podcast with R.J. Hampton has its debut on October 23.

The new series join Getcha Popcorn Ready with T.O. and Hatch, which starts season two on September 8, and No Chill with Gilbert Arenas, which returns for season 3 in October.

Also Read: NewFronts: FuboTV Offers Custom Audience Segments to Advertisers

“Our roster of Fubo Sports Network originals continues to grow as we bring the voice of the athlete to audiences wherever they consume content,” said Pamela Duckworth, head of Fubo Sports Network and original programming, FuboTV. “As the line blurs between athletes in the game and behind the mic, we’re building a space for sports stars turned content creators to share their first-hand experiences and insights with our audience of enthusiastic fans. I am grateful to have R.J., Housh and Orlando join us.”

All four series on Fubo Sports Network can be streamed for free on the network’s YouTube channel and on LG Channels, Samsung TV Plus, The Roku Channel, Vizio Channels, Sports on Tubi, Plex, Hisense Smart TVs, Xumo and most podcast platforms. Fubo Sports Network is also available as part of FuboTV’s subscription packages.

Fubo Sports Network said its viewership has increased 140% year-over-year. As it expands its reach to even more platforms, it has generated more than 6.4 million hours viewed on YouTube, plus millions of podcast downloads and impressions across Instagram, TikTok, Twitch and Twitter.  ■

Fubo Sports Network will telecast The Gaming Society Football Show featuring former All-Pro quarterback Michael Vick beginning December 16, the network said Thursday.

The weekly "vodcast" show, produced by sports betting platform Gaming Society, will feature Vick and sports betting expert Dave Anderson discussing the week's upcoming football games, including betting insights and fantasy plays, according to the service. 

“We’re excited to welcome Gaming Society to Fubo Sports Network and bring even more entertainment featuring the voice of the athlete to fans,” said Fubo Sports Network head of original programming Pamela Duckworth in a statement. “Michael Vick and Dave Anderson have a fresh perspective on professional football plus sports betting, making their show a perfect fit for our lineup of vodcasts and podcasts."

Also: Fubo Sports Network Kicking Up its Live Sports Offerings 

Added Gaming Society co-founder Jaymee Messler: “The Gaming Society Football Show takes an approach to sports betting that resonates with every fan who loves football. Dave and Mike's undeniable chemistry, athlete perspective and compelling storytelling help make sports betting more relatable, inclusive and easy to understand, underscoring Gaming Society’s mission. We’re thrilled to partner with Fubo Sports Network to bring the show to an even wider audience.” ■ 

Fubo Sports Network is ramping up its live sports offerings this Saturday with coverage of the LXF 6 Lights Out Xtreme Fighting mixed martial arts event, part of several live sports events the network is offering its growing base of viewers.

Traditionally known for unscripted sport-themed content, the two year-old network -- part of FuboTV's streaming platform and available to 75 million devices through such platforms as Samsung TV Plus, The Roku Channel, Vizio Channels and XUMO -- has in the past year offered live Conmebol South American World Cup 2022 Qualifying matches as well as live games from Spain’s premier pro basketball league, Liga Endesa along with LXF MMA fights.  

To complement its live sports telecasts, the network and FuboTV this past September launched free-to-play predictive gaming offerings. For this Saturday’s LXF 6 event, the network will allow viewers to engage in free-to-play trivia games to earn points toward a $1,000 prize. Viewers can access the games -- which will appear on the same screen with the event’s live feed -- via remote control without having to open another app, according to the network. 

The live events join the network’s lineup of unscripted, sports-themed series including No Chill with Gilbert Arenas, starring the former NBA all-star basketball player; Getcha Popcorn Ready with T.O. and Hatch, featuring former NFL wide receivers Terrell Owens and Matthew Hatchett; soccer-themed sports talk show The Cooligans; and Drinks with Blinks, hosted by sports broadcaster Julie Stewart-Binks.

Fubo Sports Network head Pamela Duckworth recently spoke to Multichannel News regarding the network’s live sports acquisition strategy as well as the network’s continued focus on athlete-themed original series. An edited version of the interview appears below. 

Multichannel News: How important has the addition of live sports programming been to the evolution of Fubo Sports Network?

Pamela Duckworth: I think it puts us in the game. With our deal with Conmebol, which is a South American World Cup qualifier event, we were able to air some of the games for free on our network. We also did some original shoulder programming around every weekend that we aired the live games in both English and Spanish, and that’s been super successful. We’ve also added Lights Out Xtreme Fighting events, of which we have one this weekend, so it’s been a pretty exciting time for the network.

MCN: Has the addition of live sports programming helped attract a younger audience to Fubo Sports Network?

PD: Yes, particularly the mixed martial arts events. We’ve done some really fun things with it on the digital side. For instance, we’re going to have a social media person at [Saturday's] live event providing some behind the scenes footage, which will go out to viewers at the same time that we’re doing the live show. We think that will help bring in some new, younger viewers as well.

MCN: Overall, how do you see the live TV sports landscape shaping up over the next couple of years?

PD: Just looking at the landscape you’re seeing non-traditional players getting into the field and snatching up a lot of the live sports event rights. We know that live sports is the number one draw for viewers on television … it’s everything that you would want on your network. So we’re out there just like everyone else trying to find any sports that could work on our network.

MCN: Along with live programming, you’ve also added some interactive features to the service. How has that helped serve the network from a viewership and advertiser perspective?

PD: Our free-to-play integrated games do increase the time viewers remain with the platform. I don’t know about you but I love playing trivia, so if viewers are being served up trivia and other games while they’re watching the live event, they’re obviously going to be more engaged. As for advertisers, we’ve had [Anheuser-Busch's] Michelob Ultra as part of our games and we’re actively looking to get other advertisers to be a part of the games. That can only grow exponentially.

MCN: What will Fubo Sports Network look like in 2022?

PD: We’re going to draft off of our successes, which includes our originals. I think it's great to give these athletes a platform where they can showcase the other side of themselves, so I want to grow in that area along with obviously the live sports area.

Former NBA star Gilbert Arenas and former NFL standout Terrell Owens host weekly shows that premiere on Fubo Sports Network Aug. 22. Season two of No Chill With Gilbert Arenas is on Sunday at 7 p.m. ET/PT and season one of Getcha Popcorn Ready With T.O. and Hatch starts at 8 p.m.

Guests this season on No Chill include former Chicago Bulls player DeMar DeRozan and former NBA player Richard Jefferson. 

Fubo Sports Network is part of streaming platform FuboTV. It launched in 2019. 

“The audience response to No Chill’s first season on Fubo Sports Network was tremendous, and we’re so thrilled to team up with Gil and give them more,” said Pamela Duckworth, head of Fubo Sports Network and original programming. “Gil always comes to the table with a perspective uniquely his own, and we can’t wait for fans to see what we’re cooking up for season two.” 

Arenas played in the NBA from 2001 to 2012. 

Season one had Dwyane Wade, Stephen A. Smith and Nick Young as guests.   

"I'm excited to run No Chill back with Fubo Sports Network for the 2021-2022 season,” said Arenas. “Our show reached new heights in our first season together, and I have no doubt we'll build on that success in season two."  

Owens hosts Getcha Popcorn Ready with former NFL wide receiver Matthew Hatchette. “With an undeniable chemistry and a commitment to real talk and actual differences of opinion, this new series brings every bit of the entertainment that Hall of Fame showman T.O. famously promised football fans when he told them to get their popcorn ready,” said Fubo. 

Owens played for 16 years in the NFL. 

“We’re focused on building an original programming slate of vodcast/podcasts hosted by iconic athletes with a fresh point of view that fans want to hear,” said Duckworth. “Getcha Popcorn Ready fits perfectly with this approach, and we are so thrilled that Terrell and Matt have joined the Fubo Sports Network family.”

The show is produced in Los Angeles.  

“We love what Fubo Sports Network is building, and we’re excited for Getcha Popcorn Ready to be a part of it,” said Owens and Hatch. “With Fubo playing quarterback, we know we’re gonna put up some huge numbers.”  

Both shows were inspired by their hosts' podcasts. 

Fubo Sports Network has added ViacomCBS-owned AVOD platform Pluto TV to its distribution. 

The 24/7 sports channel, launched last year by virtual pay TV company fubo TV prior to its merger with FaceBank Group, already touts distribution on the fubo TV vMVP:D service, The Roku Channel and Xumo, as well as LG, Samsung and Vizio smart TVs.

FuboTV said fubo Sports Network is now available on more than 75 million devices. 

Also read: FuboTV Finished 2019 with Nearly 316K Subscribers

“We’re excited to bring fubo Sports Network to even more sports fans through Pluto TV, the largest free streaming distributor in the country,” said Min Kim, VP of business development for fuboTV, in a statement. “Since launching fubo Sports Network less than a year ago, we’ve built a differentiated offering for a dedicated audience who tune in for live games, original sports programming, sports docs and movies. We look forward to bringing Pluto TV fans 24/7 sports coverage on and off the field with a unique point of view.”

Also read: Ex-NBA Star Arenas Brings Podcast to fubo Sports Network

“In challenging times like these, with many live sporting events on hold, our current channel lineup featuring classic live sporting events, news, documentaries/series and sports-themed movies, have proven to be a great alternative for fans in search of what to watch,” states Amy Kuessner, Pluto TV’s senior VP of content strategy and global partnerships. “We are incredibly excited to welcome fubo Sports Network to Pluto TV as it brings even greater dimension.”

With sports on hold, the fubo Sports Network is adding a streaming video version of former NBA All-Star Gilbert Arenas’ podcast.

No Chill with Gilbert Arenas is expected to launch May 4.

"When I got started with The No Chill Podcast, I wanted to share everything that I knew about basketball with my fans,” said Arenas. “Bringing it to fubo Sports Network, I wanted to bring it to the next level, shining a light on what I love about the game and its future stars."

Fubo Sports Network is also adding dozens of movies and documentaries to its lineup through studios Gunpowder & Sky and 1091 Media.

Other new shows on fubo Sports including Sports Court  from Law&Crime Network, CampusLore Live,  in which pro athletes share stories from their college days; Inverleigh, covering a wide range of sports, and Tourist Sauce and Strapped on golf from No Laying Up.

“At a time when everyone is missing the thrill of live sports, we sought to ramp up fubo Sports Network’s original programming with compelling and inspiring sports stories,” said Pamela Duckworth, head of fubo Sports Network and original programming. “There is no storyteller more original than Gilbert Arenas, and we are thrilled he chose fubo Sports Network for his podcast’s television debut. I’m really excited about our spring programming lineup, and I look forward to adding back live sports as soon as it is safe.”

BONUS FIVE

What are you binge-watching?Killing Eve
All-time favorite show?Modern Family
Destinations on your bucket list? Bali is the top of the list. Oh, I definitely want to do a dude ranch in Montana next year.
Books on your nightstand? I love hardcover books. I am reading Bob Iger’s Ride of a Lifetime.
Favorite podcast? Oprah’s Super Soul Sunday. I find it inspiring and uplifting.

As a startup entering the the ultra-competitive virtual multichannel video programming distributor (MVPD) market, fuboTV made a strategic move towards business-model diversification over the summer, launching fubo Sports Network, a 24-hour, studio-based sports news channel. Available on Roku, ad-supported video-on-demand platform Xumo and other parts of the over-the-top ecosystem beyond just fuboTV, the 24-hour service is themed around fuboTV’s area of focus — the global soccer scene — as well as other sports that are considered niche in the U.S. The channel’s tone spans from straightforward sports news and analysis to comedy. The model follows that of Cheddar, the 24-hour digital news network that was purchased by Altice USA for $200 million earlier this year.

The woman in charge of the network and its programming is Pamela Duckworth, who was head of advertising production and events at DirecTV from 2006 to 2016. She spoke with Multichannel News senior content producer, technology Daniel Frankel.

Why do you think you were chosen to lead the studio programming initiative? I had been working with the team at fuboTV since 2017, overseeing their commercial campaigns. One day, [co-founder/CEO] David Gandler told me he wanted to launch a linear sports network and he wanted me to run it. I’m always up for a challenge, and with my 25-plus years of experience in entertainment and as an executive producer, it seemed too good an opportunity to pass up.

What is the “brand lens” of the fubo Sports Network? Who specifically are you targeting? We actually talk about our brand lens all the time because we see fubo Sports Network as an evolving brand, much the same way the media space is constantly changing. Fubo Sports Network targets passionate sports fans who want to consume all things sports both on and off the field. On the field, we’re airing a wide range of sports — from college football to more niche sports like 6 vs. 6 soccer. But off the field is really where fubo Sports Network is different. Our original programming leans into comedy as a way to talk about sports.

How challenging are your budget constraints right now? We’re a startup within a startup, so budget concerns are real. We have to get extremely creative with how we pull off producing and acquiring our programming.

Where do you see fubo Sports Network in one year? Five years? Our goal for year one is growth — we want to keep growing the network with more content and more distribution, bring on more sales partners and, ultimately, grow eyeballs. Our five-year goal would be to become a place that viewers rely on to get their fill of sports-centric comedy, a wide variety of sports coverage and on the flip side, to also be a place that content creators want to work with.

How much autonomy do you have on creative decisions? I love being collaborative and foster that environment with my team. With that said, the creative decisions ultimately fall on my shoulders. I am a big risk-taker, so this is something I welcome.

FuboTV is filling in the blanks for its 24-hour digital channel, Fubo Sports Network, announcing a new original programming chief and its first slate of largely soccer-focused programming.

Pamela Duckworth, a longtime DirecTV programming events executive, will oversee programming for FuboTV’s live linear network, which soft launched in June. Fubo Sports Network runs not only on the FuboTV virtual MVPD service, but also on LG Channels powered by XUMO, Samsung TV Plus, The Roku Channel and Xumo.

New shows include:

● Call It a Night with Julie Stewart-Binks (Tuesdays and Thursdays at 7 p.m.) - The flagship news program on sports and sports culture is hosted by popular sports journalist and comedian Julie Stewart-Binks. Taped from fubo Sports Network’s studio in Hudson Yards, NYC.

● The Players Lounge with Cobi Jones and PJ Harrison (Wednesdays at 8 p.m.) - Interview show features soccer Hall-of-Famer Jones is one of the few soccer players from Major League Soccer to have his number retired. Harrison is a creative director and City of Angels Football Club cofounder.

● The Cooligans (Tuesdays and Thursdays at 8 p.m.) - New York comedians Alexis Guerreros and Christian Polanco riff on American and world soccer.

● Drinks with Binks (Fridays at 8 p.m.) - Sportscaster Julie Stewart-Binks drinks with athletes and fans in a new vodcast.

● Football Report (Tuesdays and Thursdays at 6 p.m.) - News about soccer’s biggest stars, teams and leagues.

● fubo News (Friday at 6 p.m.) - Customized coverage of the world’s top sporting events.

FuboTV alludes to several upcoming shows being produced in partnership with FanDuel, The Players Tribune and USA Today, but no time slots are premiere dates were announced.

The network will also feature Univision’s weekly Sunday afternoon English-language coverage of Mexico’s top soccer league, Liga MX Soccer, as well as coverage of major cycling events such as Giro d’Italia and Cycliste de Quebec.

Startup FuboTV is following the Cheddar model for Fubo Sports Network, seeking a broad combination of linear and digital distribution for the 24-hour network.

“We know that sports are the most engaged live events in the world, however we saw a lack of sports coverage on a free-to-consumer basis,” said David Gandler, co-founder and CEO of FuboTV, in a statement. “The concept for Fubo Sports Network was conceived only in March, and I’m proud that our team came together in just a few short months to launch a new network to fill that void.”