ESPN closes L.A. Live studio, consolidates West Coast production at NFL Network facility in Inglewood
LOS ANGELES — An era of ESPN television production in downtown Los Angeles is coming to an end this week.
In a significant shift for ESPN's West Coast operations, the network is closing its Los Angeles Production Center located at L.A. Live and consolidating its operations at the NFL Network facility in Inglewood, adjacent to SoFi Stadium. This move, announced this week, brings ESPN's primary Los Angeles television productions under the same roof as NFL Network and NFL RedZone, marking a step in the integration of the two entities since their landmark deal earlier this year.
ESPN acquired NFL Network and a 10% equity stake in ESPN, while the NFL received a 10% stake in ESPN. The new consolidated West Coast production center in Inglewood will feature state-of-the-art technology and will serve as the home for NFL Network, NFL RedZone, NBA Today, and WNBA Countdown. Approximately 160 employees have relocated to the new facility, while others have moved to a Disney facility in Glendale.
The closure of the L.A. Live facility ends a 17-year run for ESPN in the downtown Los Angeles district, which originally opened in April 2009 as one of the original tenants of the L.A. Live entertainment district. The network's iconic late-night West Coast edition of SportsCenter, which debuted in April 2009, will no longer originate from L.A.
Live, having been shifted back to Bristol in the previous year. The move to Inglewood is significant as the NFL Network facility is becoming a central hub for ESPN's future, being located just steps from SoFi Stadium, which will host Super Bowl LXI in February 2027. This consolidation provides ESPN with a built-in base for what is expected to be one of the largest productions in the company's history, with the network already utilizing the Inglewood facility for special programming leading up to the Super Bowl.
Written by urgent.news from Yahoo Sports's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.