The end of a long Sunday tradition
It's the end of an era.
ESPN confirmed that it will launch "Women's Sports Sundays" in the prime Sunday night window once held by Major League Baseball. The network and league are breaking up, ending a 35-year run of Sunday Night Baseball on ESPN. Beginning this year, NBC and Peacock take over the contract.
The new block runs for nine weeks during the summer, featuring 12 live primetime games from the WNBA and the National Women's Soccer League. Executives also plan to include women's college basketball or softball matchups when scheduling allows. The programming shift places women's leagues in one of the most valuable slots in sports television.
Leadership defends the move
Jimmy Pitaro, ESPN's chairman, directed the change after the baseball rights deal expired, and assembled a 60-person team to fast-track the development of the Sunday block. Susie Piotrkowski, vice president of women's sports programming and ESPNW, helped design the nine-week rollout and will oversee production and storytelling around featured athletes.
Pitaro framed the decision as a business move rooted in growth. ESPN leaders have avoided political leads and insist the network follows audience trends and advertiser interest. The network still carries roughly 30 midweek MLB games under separate agreements, but the flagship Sunday platform is gone.
Baseball’s steady draw
Sunday Night Baseball averaged 1.8 million viewers during the 2025 regular season, a number that represented double-digit growth from recent seasons and marked one of the strongest years since 2012. The broadcast offered fans national matchups they rarely see in local markets and gave teams outside major media hubs regular exposure.
For decades, MLB fans flipped on ESPN in summer evenings, while the brand became routine. Replacing that habit is risky.
Women’s leagues show growth but uneven reach
WNBA broadcasts across ESPN networks averaged 1.3 million viewers over 25 regular-season games in 2025, a 6% increase from the previous year, while postseason games averaged 1.2 million viewers.
Caitlin Clark's appearances generated major spikes, sometimes drawing audiences that rivaled top men's broadcasts, confirming the lesson that games without headline stars delivered lower totals.
National Women's Soccer League broadcasts have grown, though overall viewership remains smaller. The NWSL championship surpassed 1 million viewers for the first time, signaling upward movement but still far below MLB's consistent national numbers.
The gap doesn't erase progress; it shows that the scale remains very different.
A prime time test
Women's Sports Sundays begins after the NBA and NHL playoffs conclude in mid-June, a window that falls squarely within the peak schedules of the WNBA and NWSL. ESPN plans high-production-value studio segments to build rivalries and narratives around athletes.
Pitaro and Piotrkowski now face a clear test: The Sunday slot historically delivered millions with relative consistency. Women's leagues will need strong matchups beyond superstar nights to hold casual viewers.
Some fans view the decision as a cultural signal more than a ratings calculation. Others argue that growth in women's sports deserves a premium platform. Social media already reflects split reactions.
Supporters celebrate the investment, while longtime baseball viewers question why a steady product gave way to an experiment.
Executives believe momentum will carry through the summer; critics suspect that, without reliable blockbuster names, audience numbers may soften.
Television history shows that habit drives viewership; once a plan breaks, it rarely rebuilds the same way. ESPN has chosen to reset that pattern.
Final thoughts
The move replaces a 35-year tradition with a statement about direction. Whether the statement translates into sustained ratings remains unknown. Women's leagues are growing, but baseball still commands broad appeal.
Viewers will decide with remotes, not headlines. Sunday night will tell the story.
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