Sony's Beyond Sports and ESPN Expand Collaboration to Bring Additional Animated Telecasts to NFL, NHL, NBA, and WNBA Fans
TECHNOLOGYSPORTS
Third annual 'Funday Football' alternate NFL telecast kicks off Dec. 8, 2025, with the Philadelphia Eagles and Los Angeles Chargers on Monday Night Football, Set in the World of Pixar's Iconic Monsters, Inc.
The way we watch live sports is evolving, blending real-time action with immersive, animated worlds designed to captivate a new generation of fans. Following the massive success of their first animated collaborations, Sony's Beyond Sports and ESPN are officially strengthening their partnership with a major expansion set to redefine the 2025/2026 season for fans of four major leagues: the NFL, NHL, NBA, and WNBA.
This expansion kicks off in spectacular fashion on Monday, December 8, 2025, with the third annual installment of Funday Football. This time, the Monday Night Football game between the Philadelphia Eagles and the Los Angeles Chargers will be virtually recreated as the "Monsters Funday Football" telecast, set entirely within the universe of Pixar’s beloved Monsters, Inc.
Beyond the Broadcast: The Technology Driving the Magic
These aren't just cartoon overlays; they are sophisticated, tech-driven broadcasts powered by Sony's Beyond Sports data visualization technology.
The technology works by capturing live gameplay data using two critical sources: Sony’s Hawk-Eye Innovations and the NFL’s Next Gen Stats. This real-time player tracking data is instantly fed into the visualization platform, which turns every tackle, pass, and goal into animated action with stunning accuracy. Players become animated characters in captivating 3D virtual environments.
Sander J. Schouten, Managing Director and Co-Founder of Beyond Sports, explained the core mission: “The incredible reaction to our past animated telecasts proved there’s a huge appetite for content that blends sports and data with storytelling. We're excited to work with ESPN to bring these immersive, animated worlds to fans of four major leagues, creating fun, unforgettable and shareable moments.”
A Full Slate of Animated Action
While the Monsters Funday Football telecast—featuring Mike Wazowski and James P. “Sulley” Sullivan joining the Eagles and Chargers, respectively, on a football-field-decked-out Scare Floor—is the immediate draw, the new agreement promises similar experiences across other major professional leagues:
NFL
NHL
NBA
WNBA
By integrating intellectual property from The Walt Disney Company library, ESPN and Beyond Sports can create alternate broadcasts that attract new and younger viewers. The December 8th telecast, for instance, will feature ESPN commentators Drew Carter and Dan Orlovsky appearing as animated characters themselves, calling the action from a Virtual Broadcast Booth inside the animated world.
This expanded collaboration underscores a crucial trend in sports media: innovation is key to fan engagement. By blurring the lines between live competition and animated entertainment, ESPN and Sony are not only enhancing the viewing experience for families but are also future-proofing the way the next generation connects with professional sports.
For more visit stream.espn.com.