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With comedian Marcello Hernández to host, the biggest names in sports are set to attend the 34th annual ESPY Awards to recognize nominees and honorees in more than 20 categories, including best athlete, men and women’s sports, breakthrough athlete and many others.
The ESPYS takes place at the David H. Koch Theater at Lincoln Center in New York City tonight, Wednesday, July 15. The show starts at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on ABC and livestreams on DirecTV and ESPN Unlimited.
Stars from the sports world are expected to attend, like Jalen Brunson, Shohei Ohtani, Matthew Stafford, Alysa Liu, A’ja Wilson, Myles Garrett and others. In the meantime, check out a complete list of ESPY Award nominations and honorees here.
The sports celebration also includes performances from De La Soul, Ghostface Killah, Slick Rick and the Savannah Bananas.
When Is ESPY Awards 2026? Date, Time
The ESPYS start at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT, with the preview show starting around 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT on ESPN.
ESPY Awards 2026: How to Watch the Awards Ceremony Online for Free
The awards ceremony is available to watch on ABC, so you can watch with a subscription to DirecTV, which comes with a 5-day free trial. The broadcast network is also available on Sling TV, Fubo, Hulu + Live TV and ESPN Unlimited.
DirecTV
DirecTV is one of the best ways for cable-cutters to access live sports and TV from home.
Priced at $59.99/month for the first month of service ($89.99/month afterwards), you get access to the streaming service’s “Entertainment” package for the ESPYS on ABC, along with over 90 local, broadcast and cable channels. The streamer comes with unlimited cloud DVR for recording programming, as well as an additional 105 channels from DirecTV’s “MyFree” networks.
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ESPN Unlimited
Get all ESPN networks with one streaming service
Get an ESPN Unlimited subscription here for $29.99/month, which will get you instant access to the livestream online. Unlike pay-per-view events, the ESPYS is available to stream online free for ESPN Unlimited subscribers.
For new subscribers, ESPN Unlimited bundle comes with Disney+ and Hulu for $35.99/month. The bundle comes with ESPN Unlimited, as well as Disney+ and Hulu for free when you purchase access to the livestream feed.
However, the streaming service doesn’t come with a free trial, but there’s a clever workaround, if you want to watch ESPN Unlimited for free. Learn more about how to watch online for free here.
ESPN Unlimited features everything that ESPN has to offer, including access to all of its networks and streaming service, like ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN3, ESPN on ABC, ESPNU, ESPNEWS, ESPN Deportes, SEC Network, ACC Network and ESPN+. It’s the ideal streamer for sports fans who want it all.
Sling TV
Pricing and channel availability are subject to your local TV market.
Sling TV is one of the best options for affordable live streaming with the Sling Orange + Blue package starting at $60.99 per month. The package includes ABC and ESPN, as well as more than 50 other channels, 50 hours of cloud DVR for recording programming and a library of free-to-watch on-demand movies and TV shows.
Fubo
Starting at $63.99 for the first month of service ($88.99/month afterwards)
Fubo is one of the best options for streaming the ESPYS. The service features ABC for the sports awards ceremony. It even has more than 220 live TV channels for cable-free streaming and an unlimited cloud DVR. Watch the event with Fubo’s 5-day free trial. You can even stream on up to two devices at the same time.
Hulu + Live TV
Prices start at $89.99/month.
For another great option for to watch the ESPYS, check out Hulu + Live TV for live channel streaming with access to ABC and ESPN. Starting at $89.99/month, the streaming service has more than 90 other channels, as well as access to hit originals on Disney+, Hulu and ESPN Unlimited.
The 2026 ESPY Awards starts at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT and broadcasts on ABC tonight, Wednesday, July 15. Watch on TV through your local ABC affiliate or livestream the awards ceremony online with DirecTV.