ESPN is making a fresh round of layoffs, most of which are related to the Disney-owned sports giant’s deal to take over the NFL Network, according to a memo from chairman Jimmy Pitaro.
Pitaro revealed the planned job cuts in a memo to staffers Tuesday, a copy of which was obtained by Variety. In February, the NFL took a 10% stake in ESPN, the result of a deal that made NFL Network and NFL RedZone part of ESPN’s operations.
“Over the past several months, we’ve made significant progress integrating the NFL assets that we acquired into ESPN,” Pitaro wrote. “Throughout this process, we have taken the time to carefully evaluate our collective teams, resources and organizational structure to best position us for the future. As a result, we had to make some difficult decisions about job impacts that we will be communicating today.”
Pitaro’s memo continued, “While most of the job impacts are tied to the acquisition, we will also notify colleagues in other parts of the company today that their positions have been impacted. We are committed to treating employees with compassion and respect and to providing support as they navigate this transition.”
Pitaro didn’t spell out the scope of the job cuts. ESPN declined to comment.
