Who owns ESPN?
ESPN is owned by Disney (the United States, NYSE: DIS).[1]
Key facts
- Current owner
- The Walt Disney Company verified
- Owned since
- Not recorded
- Previous owner
- None recorded
- Owner HQ
- 🇺🇸 United States, Burbank, California
- Origin
- 🇺🇸 United States, Bristol, Connecticut
- Founded
- 1979
- Category
- Media & entertainment › Film & television › Television networks
- Parent ticker
- NYSE: DIS
- Last verified
- · 1 sources
About ESPN
ESPN launched in 1979 from a Connecticut car park and became the most valuable channel in American cable, charging distributors far more per subscriber than any other. Cord-cutting has eroded that model, and Disney has moved it towards direct streaming.
Ownership timeline of ESPN
Where ESPN sits in Disney
Controlling ownership as of . Brands grouped under the entity that owns them; large groups are collapsed.
Open the full Disney ownership tree →
Other brands owned by Disney in media & entertainment
Latest news about ESPN
No tagged news items yet. Headlines are added nightly from public feeds; only titles and links are stored.
Headlines link to the original publisher. Brandtree does not reproduce article text.
Frequently asked questions
Who is the parent company of ESPN?
The parent company of ESPN is Disney, a publicly listed company headquartered in the United States.
Is ESPN American?
Yes. ESPN originated in the United States in 1979 and its owner, Disney, is also headquartered in the United States.
Is ESPN still owned by Disney?
Yes. As of 8 September 2026, ESPN is still owned by Disney. The ownership record was last checked against primary sources on that date.
Sources (1) & corrections
Last verified . Every ownership fact above is backed by one of these primary documents. Numbers in brackets in the text refer to this list.
- [1] The Walt Disney Company Annual Report on Form 10-K filed 2025-11-13 — SEC EDGAR, SEC Form 10-K, published 13 November 2025; retrieved 8 September 2026.
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