The Whistle Sports Network is crossing The Pond to London, marking its first international location.

With its new division in London, the multiplatform sports content provider  will be exposed to more behind the scenes, cross-channel programming, allowing athletes and leagues to be featured easily.

Former YouTube executive Jeff Nathenson will lead the way, starting September 1 as SVP, Content Partnerships and Distribution, EMEA.

“Enthusiasm for the World Cup earlier this year, demonstrated by engagement on social media and video platforms, proved how sports fans around the world are using technology to share their passion and excitement. Having Jeff join from the world’s largest digital platform to lead our European office is invaluable to Whistle Sports’ growth,” said Jeff Urban, the company’s co-founder and president.

The Whistle Sports Network produces sports coverage from the viewer’s point of view, with multiple pro league partner content and much more. All content is accessible through the web, mobile apps and the Xbox app, launched in August.

 The Whistle Sports Network has added Major League Soccer to its list of content partners, which includes professional leagues such as the NFL, MLB, NASCAR, the PGA Tour, AVP and Major League Lacrosse. The network, which launched on YouTube in January, also reached a content and distribution agreement with KickTV in conjunction with the MLS. 

The partnership will bring Major League Soccer content to The Whistle Sports Network's recently-launched Xbox application. The network's transition to the Xbox platform follows a successful eight months on YouTube, where it has amassed more than 6.8 million subscribers, 140 channel partners and more than one billion views. The Xbox deal will allow content from both KickTV and the MLS to reach a larger audience. 

"The partnership with The Whistle will allow MLS and KickTV to reach an audience of 80 million engaged Xbox users who align very well to our target of young tech-savvy soccer fans," said Chris Schlosser, vice president, MLS Digital, in a release.

The Whistle Sports Network, a sports-focused cross platform network and community, said it has acquired The Lacrosse Network (TLN), the top YouTube destination for that fast-growing sport. Terms were not disclosed.

“Our first acquisition is also the first place millions of lacrosse fans and athletes have turned to learn about and enjoy their favorite sport. TLN has built a great team, captured a growing and passionate audience and delivered interesting content on a regular basis,” Whistle co-founder Jeff Urban said in a release. “We look forward to making them an important part of our team and an important part of our own growth.”

The acquisition gives The Whistle access to TLN’s live broadcasts of lacrosse games, documentaries, sports stories, highlight reels and a library of original programming. It also gives The Whistle Network access to TLN’s 2.3 million video views a month and 210,000 network subscribers on YouTube.

"The momentum we're seeing from sports channels on YouTube like The Whistle and The Lacrosse Network is as thrilling to see as the sports themselves. With so much opportunity in sports video, we look forward to seeing what these channels do next," Claude Ruibal, YouTube’s Global Head of Sports Partnerships, said in the release from The Whistle.  

TLN’s founders and employees, including co-founders Samir Chaudry and Julien Berndt and creative director Colin Rosenblum, will become part of The Whistle Network team. TLN’s studio in Los Angeles will add to The Whistle’s production facilities in New York and Dallas and President Samir Chaudry will remain as president.

“We love what we’ve built and are building and would not have done a deal like this if we were not convinced that it will be a great way to grow rapidly,” TLN co-founder Samir Chaudry said in the release. “The Whistle is building an entirely new kind of cross platform digital network and, with the support of pro leagues, is moving quick to scale across multiple sports. We look forward to integrating our team, our programming and our expertise into their multi-million subscriber network.”

The Whistle Network will work with TLN’s team to develop and promote content on their YouTube channels, including behind the scenes and cross-channel programming on their digital platforms. These platforms include their website, mobile apps and on YouTube.

The Whistle Network, which launched on New Year’s Eve with backing from pro league partners and YouTube content creators like Dude Perfect, says it is one of the top two sports destinations on YouTube in North America, with 4.3 million subscribers, 101 channel partners and a library of more than 11,800 videos viewed more than 604 million times. Professional league content and equity partners include Major League Baseball’s Advanced Media, the NFL, PGA Tour, NASCAR, Major League Lacrosse, Major League Ultimate and the U.S. Ski and Snowboard Association.