ESPN's 'This Is SportsCenter' Campaign Returns with U.S. Women's Soccer Team

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Syracuse mascot also appears in 'Orange Slices'

This is 'SportsCenter' promo
New 'SportsCenter' promo features members of the U.S. Women's National Soccer Team. (Image credit: ESPN)

ESPN is bringing back its familiar "This Is SportsCenter" campaign with a new spot airing Friday during the Capital One Orange Bowl.

The new spot, dubbed "Orange Slices," features Megan Rapinoe, Becky Sauerbrunn and Sophia Smith of the U.S. Women's National Soccer Team, SportsCenter anchor Nicole Briscoe and Syracuse University mascot Otto the Orange.

ESPN said this is the first "This Is SportsCenter" promo since 2019 and more commercials in the campaign will air in 2023. Among those featured in upcoming ads are Olympic gold medalist Sydney McLaughlin and anchors Elle Duncan, Kevin Negandhi, Jay Harris and Hannah Storm. More mascots will be appearing as well.

"'This Is SportsCenter' is iconic, and a campaign that everyone knows and loves. It is at the core of who we are at ESPN, and we're thrilled it's returning at a key time in the sports calendar," Laura Gentile, executive VP, commercial marketing, Disney Networks & ESPN, said. "'This Is SportsCenter' featured timeless creative dating back to the mid-1990s, and it's our job to uphold this standard and build upon it in new ways." ■

Jon Lafayette
Jon Lafayette

Jon has been business editor of Broadcasting+Cable since 2010. He focuses on revenue-generating activities, including advertising and distribution, as well as executive intrigue and merger and acquisition activity. Just about any story is fair game, if a dollar sign can make its way into the article. Before B+C, Jon covered the industry for TVWeek, Cable World, Electronic Media, Advertising Age and The New York Post. A native New Yorker, Jon is hiding in plain sight in the suburbs of Chicago.