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DISH Network reaches handshake agreement with Disney, restores entire sports portfolio

Nikki Chavanelleby: Nikki Chavanelle10/03/22NikkiChavanelle
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Kevin Abele/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images

DISH Network users were hit with a blackout of Disney programming, which includes ESPN and ABC, over the weekend. DISH’s contract with the mass media company expired on Oct. 1, which triggered a blackout until a new agreement came together roughly 48 hours later.

On Sunday night, DISH announced a deal to restore all the Disney channels after roughly 10 million users went through the sports-laden weekend without access.

“We are pleased to announce that all your Disney and ESPN channels have been restored. Thank you for your patience and support,” Dish wrote on Twitter.

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Disney also released a statement revealing a “handshake agreement” with DISH reflecting a “fair market value” for the channels. The two companies will continue to work out their official agreement with the final deal expected to come together in the next few days.

Prior to reaching the agreement with the media group, DISH encouraged subscribers to call the media company to “make your voice heard.”

Channels restored for DISH customers on Sunday:

  • ESPN
  • ESPN2
  • ESPNU
  • ESPN News
  • ESPN Deportes
  • Disney Channel
  • Disney Jr.
  • Disney XD
  • Freeform
  • Baby TV
  • FX
  • FXX
  • FXM
  • National Geographic
  • Nat Geo Wild
  • Nat Geo Mundo
  • ACC Network
  • SEC Network
  • Longhorn Network
  • Local ABC Channels

Football fans with DISH will now be able to watch Monday Night Football on ESPN. The MNF matchup is between the LA Rams and San Francisco 49ers with kickoff set for 8:15 p.m. ET.

The most watched college football games through Week 4

These are the ten most watched games of the 2022 college football season, through Week 5. This list comes from Austin Karp.

  1. Alabama–Texas (10,595,000 viewers)
  2. Notre Dame–Ohio State (10,531,000 viewers)
  3. Florida State–LSU (7,554,000 viewers)
  4. Oregon–Georgia (6,199,000 viewers)
  5. Florida–Tennessee (5,571,000 viewers)
  6. Clemson–Georgia Tech (4,859,000 viewers)
  7. Wisconsin-Ohio State (4,587,000 viewers)
  8. Tennessee-Pitt (4,457,000 viewers)
  9. Nebraska–Northwestern (4,419,000 viewers)
  10. Maryland–Michigan (4,378,000 viewers)

The only college football game not on the ESPN or Fox family of networks in the top ten was the Florida-Tennessee game on CBS.

On3’s Daniel Morrison contributed to this report.