Quote:
Originally Posted by lilstogi11
Why is there no longer any ESPN coverage?
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1998 was the last year that FIRST was covered by ESPN.
I really don't know why it stopped for sure. However, I will make a guess. Like many other tough decisions, it was probably about the money.
In 1999, FIRST asked about 20-30 teams to supply video footage so they can put together a documentary. A documentary producer ended up creating a 30 minute video that was very good. When FIRST went to ESPN to get the video aired, ESPN pushed back and wanted to blur out the corporate sponsor logos on the robots, flags, t-shirts, and such. Essentially, ESPN did not want to help advertise for these companies without being paid.
I didn't understand this at the time, and still don't quite understand it. Of course, sporting events have all kinds of corporate sponsors, and each one of them can't be paying ESPN. However, there is a high dollar contract with each sporting administration to pay ESPN for the coverage.
I suppose that FIRST could not afford this same sort of payment for a contract.
That's my best guess.
Andy