 | |
| Type | Regional sports network |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Broadcast area |
|
| Network | Bally Sports |
| Headquarters | Phoenix, Arizona |
| Programming | |
| Language(s) | English |
| Picture format | |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | Sinclair Broadcast Group and Entertainment Studios |
| Parent | Diamond Sports Group |
| History | |
| Launched | September 7, 1996 |
| Closed | October 21, 2023 |
| Former names |
|
Bally Sports Arizona (BSAZ) was an American regional sports network (RSN). The channel broadcast professional, collegiate and high school sports events, with a primary focus on Phoenix-area teams. It was available on most cable providers throughout Arizona and available nationwide on satellite provider DirecTV.
The network was launched as Fox Sports Arizona on September 7, 1996, through a partnership between News Corporation and Liberty Media. It was the first regional sports network branded as Fox Sports after the creation of Fox Sports Net from what had been the Prime Network group of RSNs. Fox Sports Arizona was the cable television home of the Phoenix Coyotes of the National Hockey League when they began play that October and of the Arizona Diamondbacks of Major League Baseball when that team began play in 1998. In addition, Fox Sports Arizona carried college sports as well as Arizona high school sports. The Phoenix Suns of the National Basketball Association moved their cable games to the network in 2003 after 22 years of association with Cox Communications and its predecessors and their RSN, the Arizona Sports and Programming Network (later renamed Cox Sports, Cox 9, Cox 7, and YurView Arizona).
On March 31, 2021, the network was rebranded Bally Sports Arizona after the network was purchased by Diamond Sports Group, a joint venture between the Sinclair Broadcast Group and Entertainment Studios. Diamond filed for bankruptcy protection in February 2023. The Arizona RSN lost money for Bally, which opted to drop all three professional teams. Under new Suns and Phoenix Mercury team owner Mat Ishbia, both the Suns and Mercury signed a deal to move their games to broadcast stations owned by Gray Television on April 20, 2023.[1] While this deal was stayed by a bankruptcy judge for the Suns (the Mercury were unaffected by the judge's ruling[2]), Bally ultimately cut ties with the Suns after failing to match Gray's offer on July 14.[3] On July 18, Major League Baseball took over production and distribution of telecasts for the Diamondbacks after Diamond missed a second payment for the Diamondbacks during the 2023 season.[4] On October 4, Bally Sports cut ties with the Coyotes;[5] the team signed a deal with Scripps Sports a day later, ahead of the start of the 2023–24 season.[6]
Bally Sports Arizona signed off for the final time on October 21, 2023.
- ^ Brown, Brandon (April 20, 2023). "Q&A: Suns' new CEO wants to capitalize on NBA Playoffs, land big concerts and shore up TV broadcasts". Phoenix Business Journal. Retrieved October 21, 2023.
- ^ Kaplan, Daniel (May 10, 2023). "Judge voids Suns' media deal with Gray TV amid Diamond Sports bankruptcy proceedings". The Arizona Republic. Retrieved October 21, 2023.
- ^ Novak, Chris (July 14, 2023). "Phoenix Suns strike deal with Gray Television". Awful Announcing. Retrieved October 21, 2023.
- ^ Gonzalez, Alden (July 18, 2023). "MLB taking over broadcasts of Arizona Diamondbacks games". ESPN Inc.
- ^ Frankel, Daniel (October 4, 2023). "Diamond Ditches the NHL's Coyotes, Pulls Plug on Bally Sports Arizona". Yahoo Entertainment. Retrieved October 21, 2023.
- ^ Mastey, Remy (October 5, 2023). "Coyotes Finalize TV Deal with Scripps Sports". The Hockey News. Retrieved 2023-10-21.