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Trophy Time: ESPN has a new awards show
First it was the ESPYs.
Now, it’s the “Sports Humanitarian of the Year,” a second industrywide awards show that ESPN is producing, with its debut coming next month.
The inaugural awards show will be taped before an audience of around 300 people, July 14 in the Conga Room at L.A. Live (the day before the ESPYs). It will air as a 30-minute show on ESPN July 23 at 8:30 p.m.
“Our team looked at what exists out here in this space,” said Kevin Martinez, ESPN’s vice president of corporate citizenship. “There wasn’t a notable organization or program talking about humanitarian efforts in sports. There was no collective effort tying all the leagues together. … Leagues do extraordinary work and need help telling that story.”
ESPN has found sponsor interest in these awards. It signed Sony PlayStation as the event’s presenting sponsor. Under Armour, Eli Lilly and The Conga Room also have sponsorships. Proceeds will benefit the Stuart Scott Memorial Cancer Research Fund at The V Foundation.
ESPN has pledged $400,000 in grants to continue some of the efforts being honored during the awards.
The show will hand out six awards in total. Two will be announced that night: the Sports Humanitarian of the Year (finalists are the San Francisco 49ers’ Anquan Boldin, the Indiana Fever’s Tamika Catchings, WWE’s John Cena and the New York Rangers’ Henrik Lundqvist) and the Sports Humanitarian Team of the Year (finalists are the Chicago Bulls, Portland Timbers, San Francisco 49ers and WWE Community Relations).
The other four awards will honor sports figures and brands: MLB Commissioner Emeritus Bud Selig and his wife Sue for spearheading MLB’s Stand Up to Cancer Campaign; Seahawks coach Pete Carroll for his violence prevention efforts in Los Angeles and Seattle; the NHL’s “You Can Play” project; and P&G’s “Always Like A Girl” campaign.
The show will have an emcee and musical act, but ESPN has not yet decided who they will be.
