Disney CEO comes out fighting after ESPN records huge losses and fires staff
Disney CEO comes out fighting after ESPN records huge losses and fires staff
Andrew GambleSun, August 16, 2026 at 3:35 PM UTC
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ESPN has been undergoing personnel changes recently -Credit:Getty Images
Disney CEO Josh D’Amaro insisted his company remain focused on growing and investing in ESPN amid huge changes and layoffs.
Recently, ESPN laid off more than 10 on-air personalities last week as part of a string of staff cuts following the network's absorption of NFL Network ahead of the 2026 season. Analyst Ryan Clark was informed of his removal during an episode of NFL Live, and veteran baseball announcer Karl Ravech — who joined ESPN in 1993 — has also been let go.
Insider Tom Pelissero is also among the cuts, though fellow insider Ian Rapoport is finalizing a new deal. ESPN has invested hundreds of millions in Pat McAfee and Stephen A. Smith, but the merger with NFL Network has led to cuts within the operation.
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This is hardly the first round of major layoffs at ESPN since Disney purchased a majority stake in the network in 1996, though the names let go in recent years have become increasingly more prominent. Staff members were informed of the changes in a memo sent by ESPN President Jimmy Pitaro.
Disney’s ownership of the worldwide leader in sports has led the network to attempt a shift to streaming amid rising rights fees, while ESPN also sold a 10-percent stake to the NFL as part of an equity deal.
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However, critics will point to a sharp drop in ESPN’s 2026 earnings, and it’s clear that Disney is still trying to determine how best to position the new ESPN Unlimited among its other streaming offerings, including Disney+. During a sitdown with CNBC at Disney’s D23 fan club event, D’Amaro discussed the future of ESPN on Disney+ for the first time since taking over the reins from new Los Angeles Lakers co-owner Bob Igerr.
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Josh D'Amaro became Disney CEO in March 2026 -Credit:Getty Images
“Well, I have been clear that I’m not interested in spinning off ESPN,” D’Amaro began. “I think that anybody in the industry would look at our sports rights and the fandom associated with sports right now, and you can’t help but be jealous of what we have here.
“I mean, ratings are through the roof. The NBA Finals, the NHL Finals, like, we have never seen ratings like this before. And I have been clear that I think it should be part of the ecosystem.
“In terms of how it becomes part of the ecosystem, I talked about in the Q3 earnings report that we will start to bring more sports over onto Disney+.
“So, that casual sports fan will have an opportunity to engage on that front, create more stickiness on the Disney+ platform.
“And then in terms of sports rights, I think that the ESPN team has been really smart about going after those rights that are most important to our business, the highest-quality sports rights, and we will continue to remain focused on that.”
It seems Disney will not follow its rivals in corporate spinoffs. NBCUniversal spun off its cable networks into Versant, leading to the creation of USA Sports, and Warner Bros. Discovery was set to do the same before it was acquired by Paramount.
Source: “AOL Entertainment”
