Baseball
Baseball United Inaugural All-Star Showcase will be broadcast in more than 120 countries
The historic two-game series will be the first professional baseball games in the history of the region.
Baseball United, the first-ever professional baseball league focused on the Middle East and Indian Subcontinent, announced today that its November 24th and November 25th All-Star Showcase event will be broadcast in 127 countries reaching nearly 200 million households. The worldwide footprint of coverage includes more than one dozen linear and OTT platforms across the Middle East, Indian Subcontinent, North and Sub-Saharan Africa, Latin and South America, Europe, Australia, Canada, and the United States.
Linear platforms include MBC, the largest media company in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), and Eurosport across India and surrounding South Asian countries. The MBC GROUP operates over 20 free-to-air TV channels and radio stations across the region, including Saudi Arabia’s leading sports channel, Saudi Sports Company (SSC). Eurosport – owned by Warner Bros. Discovery – has a network of channels available in 54 countries across 20 different languages.
A Sports, Pakistan’s first HD sports channel and a part of the ARY Digital Network will broadcast Baseball United’s All-Star games on their linear channel, with additional coverage on their free digital platform, ARYZAP. Baseball United has selected two Pakistani baseball prospects to compete in the All-Star Showcase alongside its best professional players. A landmark moment for baseball in the country of nearly 300 million people.
FOX SPORTS Australia, the country’s leading producer of sports coverage as well as Australia’s number one multi-sports website and app, will carry both Baseball United All-Star games. FOX SPORTS was also awarded streaming rights in Australia on its Kayo Sports platform.
OTT-only platforms are headlined by Fubo Sports in the United States, Canada, and Spain, and FanCode in India. Available on more than 155 million devices, Fubo Sports is a live, free-to-consumer TV network launched by FuboTV in 2019. FanCode, India's first live streaming platform dedicated to sports, has more than 100 million users. Three Indian prospects, including the nation’s top two pitchers, will compete in the All-Star Showcase, as well as Baseball United’s top overall draft pick, Karan Patel, who was selected by Baseball United’s Mumbai Cobras franchise earlier this year.
In addition, Major League Baseball will carry the two-game All-Star series on its flagship property, MLB.tv. Baseball United’s ownership group includes 15 current and former MLB stars, and its Showcase event will include over 40 former MLB players.
Baseball United will also stream the games free of charge on baseballunited.com in collaboration with technology partner, StreamAMG.
“We have been blessed with so many ‘firsts’ and so many milestones – particularly this week – and today’s news of our broadcast footprint is right at the top,” said Kash Shaikh, Baseball United Chairman, CEO, and Majority Owner. “Media rights and global viewership are critical to the success of any sports league, and broadcast reach has been a foundational pillar of our plan since day one. So, to have this type of appetite for our content for our first-ever games is really special. The lineup of broadcast partners we’ve pulled together is incredible, and it’s a testament to the potential of the sport and the power of the Baseball United brand. Most importantly, it gives our fans across the world a chance to continue on this journey with us. I am very grateful to all the great people across our entire broadcast ecosystem who are helping make all this possible.”
The extended broadcast footprint for this weekend’s Baseball United’s All-Star Showcase includes Sportsmax (the Carribbean), Africa XP (Sub-Saharan Africa), Willow.tv (USA and Canada), and DLCV (Venezuela). Baseball United partnered with broadcast media veteran, Salome Fernandes, CEO of Sports Media Frontiers, to help drive distribution across six continents.
The international broadcast will be produced by UK-based Sunset+Vine in partnership with Baseball United Executive Producer, Zohaib Hussain. Both Sunset+Vine and Hussain are veterans of worldwide sporting events, including producing many of the region’s top cricket competitions. Josh Hall, who also produces regional broadcasts for the Cincinnati Reds, will serve as the Game Producer, bringing two decades of baseball knowledge to the production. Baseball United CEO, Kash Shaikh, has served as the production’s chief creative.
Commentators for the two-game series will include U.S.-based Joey Zanaboni, as the play-by-play lead, along with Baseball United Co-Owner and former New York Yankees World Champion, Nick Swisher, as lead analyst.
The All-Star Showcase will take place on a completely transformed surface at Dubai International Stadium. Limited tickets are available at dubai.platinumlist.net or baseballunited.com.
