 | |
| Type | Regional sports network |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Broadcast area | Ohio Indiana Kentucky NorthwestPennsylvania West Virginia SouthwestNew York Nationwide (via satellite) |
| Network | FanDuel Sports Network |
| Headquarters | Cleveland, Ohio |
| Programming | |
| Language | English |
| Picture format | 720p (HDTV) 480i (SDTV) |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | Main Street Sports Group |
| History | |
| Launched | February 9, 1989 (1989-02-09) |
| Former names | SportsChannel Ohio (1989–1998) Fox Sports Ohio (1998–1999, 2008–2021) Fox Sports Net Ohio (1999–2004) FSN Ohio (2004–2008) Bally Sports Ohio (2021–2024) |
| Links | |
| Website | fanduelsportsnetwork.com |
| Availability | |
| Streaming media | |
| FanDuel Sports Network app | www.fanduelsportsnetwork.com/ (U.S. cable internet subscribers only; requires login from participating providers to stream content; some events may not be available due to league rights restrictions) |
| DirecTV Stream | Internet Protocol television |
| FuboTV | Internet Protocol television |
FanDuel Sports Network Ohio (formerlyBally Sports Ohio) is an Americanregional sports network owned byMain Street Sports Group (formerly Diamond Sports Group) as part of theFanDuel Sports Network chain.
The channel broadcasts regional coverage of sports events in the state ofOhio, with a focus on professional sports teams based inCleveland,Cincinnati, andColumbus.
FanDuel Sports Network Ohio is available oncable providers (plus U-Verse and DirecTV) throughout Ohio, as well as parts ofIndiana,Kentucky, northwesternPennsylvania, easternTennessee, border communities ofWest Virginia, and extreme southwesternNew York; it is also available nationwide onsatellite viaDirecTV.
The channel originally launched on February 9, 1989, as SportsChannel Ohio. It launched as an affiliate ofSportsChannel, a slate of regional sports networks operated as ajoint venture betweenCablevision andNBC (the owner ofWKYC until 1990). SportsChannel Ohio initially held the broadcast games from theCleveland Cavaliers and theCleveland Indians. The channel also aired selectCincinnati Reds games produced bySportsChannel Cincinnati,Notre Dame Fighting Irish basketball and football games, andOhio State Buckeyes sporting events (with the exception of football and basketball).[1]
In 1997,News Corporation andLiberty Media purchased a 40% interest in Cablevision's sports properties including the SportsChannel America networks (as well asMadison Square Garden and itsNBA andNHL team tenants, theNew York Knicks andNew York Rangers) in a deal worth $850 million, forming the venture National Sports Partners to run the owned-and-operated regional networks.[2][3] As part of a gradual rebranding of the SportsChannel networks that began that month, SportsChannel Ohio was rebranded as Fox Sports Ohio in January 1998.
The channel was then rebranded as Fox Sports Net Ohio in 2000, as part of a collective brand modification of the FSN networks under the "Fox Sports Net" banner; subsequently in 2004, the channel shortened its name to FSN Ohio, through the networks' de-emphasis of the brand.
In February 2005, News Corporation (whichspun off most of its entertainment properties into21st Century Fox in July 2013) acquired Cablevision's ownership stakes in Fox Sports Ohio andFox Sports Florida, following an asset trade in which Fox sold its interest in Madison Square Garden, the Knicks and the Rangers, to Cablevision, in exchange for acquiring sole ownership of the two networks. The channel reverted to the Fox Sports Ohio moniker in 2008
On December 14, 2017, as part of a merger between both companies,The Walt Disney Company announced plans to acquire all 22 regional Fox Sports networks from21st Century Fox, including Fox Sports Ohio, sister networkSportsTime Ohio, and Fox's 50% stake in the network's Cincinnati sub-feed. However, on June 27, 2018, theJustice Department ordered their divestment under antitrust grounds, citing Disney's ownership ofESPN.[4] On May 3, 2019, it was announced thatDiamond Sports Group (a partnership betweenSinclair Broadcast Group andAllen Media Group) would acquire the channels as part of an agreement with Disney.[5][6]
The sale was completed on August 23, 2019.[7] The network continued to operate under the Fox Sports name until March 31, 2021, when they were relaunched asBally Sports as part of a sponsorship deal between Diamond and casino operatorBally's Corporation.[8][9][10]
On March 14, 2023, Diamond Sports filed forchapter 11 bankruptcy protection.[11] On October 21, 2024, the channel was rebranded as "FanDuel Sports Network" as part of a new agreement between Diamond andFanDuel Group.[12][13][14][15]
The network operates regional feeds for the Cleveland and Cincinnati markets, both branded as FanDuel Sports Ohio (but with the latter feed disambiguated in someelectronic program guides and online television listings services as "FanDuel Sports Cincinnati"), which broadcast different events depending on the market. This arrangement can cause event conflicts in theColumbus market, which is located between Cincinnati and Cleveland. In the event of conflicting events between the two regional feeds (typically between theColumbus Blue Jackets andCleveland Cavaliers, the Blue Jackets andCincinnati Reds, and the Reds and Cavaliers), TV providers in Central Ohio will carry the other game on an alternate channel.
FanDuel Sports Network Ohio holds the exclusive regional pay television rights toMLB's Cincinnati Reds (since 1991), theNBA's Cleveland Cavaliers (since 1990), and theNHL's Columbus Blue Jackets (since 2000). The channel also carries a select number ofcollege basketball games involving theUniversity of Dayton andNorthern Kentucky University.[16][17] The network formerly held the local rights to college basketball games featuringXavier University and theUniversity of Cincinnati through the 2019–20 season.
The channel formerly broadcastCleveland Indians games from the network's launch as SportsChannel Ohio, until Fox Sports Ohio lost the rights as a result of the team starting eventual sister networkSportsTime Ohio in March 2006. Despite this move, Reds games continued to beblacked out in most ofNortheast Ohio, the designated market area of the now-Guardians. When Reds games air in the rest of Ohio, the Cleveland feed airs generic national Fox Sports Networks programming unless a local Cleveland event is scheduled. Although Fox Sports Ohio and STO came under common ownership following Fox's purchase of the latter in 2012, Bally Sports Ohio did not share broadcast rights to any sporting events with Bally Sports Great Lakes and vice versa (unlike arrangements that exist betweenFox Sports South andFox Sports Southeast, andFox Sports Florida andFox Sports Sun), with both networks maintaining their own respective team television contracts. From 2019 to 2021,Columbus Crew games were split between Fox Sports Ohio and SportsTime Ohio, although those telecasts were blacked out in the Cincinnati area due to the presence ofFC Cincinnati.
On October 19, 2016, Fox Sports and the Reds announced an extension of their broadcast agreement to the end of the 2032 season. The deal included the Reds taking an equity stake in the Cincinnati sub-feed of Fox Sports Ohio.[18][19] In November 2024, amid the Diamond Sports bankruptcy, the Reds agreed to exit the contract and would sign withMLB Local Media for the 2025 season. On January 13, 2025, the team announced that it had instead renewed with Main Street Sports Group, and would remain on FDSN Ohio for the upcoming season.[20][21]
FanDuel Sports Network Ohio was also the broadcaster for theAHL'sCleveland Monsters until 2024 when the Monsters signed a new deal withGray Television.[22]
