ESPN doubles down on Banana Ball; schedule includes day at Disneyland
Already well-known for promoting out stadiums for baseball-themed spectacles that embrace choreographed dances, ingenious trick performs and outlandish fan interplay, the Savannah Bananas have cemented their synergy with ESPN and Disney+ with a 25-game bundle in 2026.
Included within the deal will likely be a “Banana Ball Day” at Disneyland and a sport at Angel Stadium on March 26. Every sport will stream on the ESPN app and Disney+, with choose video games airing throughout ESPN networks and ABC.
The first Bananas broadcast on ABC will happen in entrance of 54,000 at Autzen Stadium in Eugene, Ore., residence of the Oregon Ducks school soccer powerhouse. The Bananas will play the Party Animals June 27-28, and the video games have been bought out since October.
The Bananas recognition is plain. The workforce performed in 40 cities in 2025, together with three NFL stadiums and 17 Major League Baseball stadiums. They bought out 65,000 seats at the Tampa Bay Buccanners’ stadium and in April performed in entrance of 81,000 at Clemson’s Memorial Stadium.
The new settlement greater than doubles final 12 months’s 12-game providing. ESPN and Disney are pure companions, constructing on a collaboration that started with the ESPN+ Original series “Bananaland” in 2022.
“This expanded agreement reflects the incredible growth and fan demand surrounding Banana Ball,” Brent Colborne, Vice President of ESPN Programming Content & Strategy, stated in a press release. “From iconic football stadiums to classic ballparks, these events showcase the energy and creativity fans love, delivered with the full reach and flexibility of ESPN, Disney+, and ABC.”
Another “Banana Ball Day” will happen at Disney World on May 29 together with a sport at the ESPN Wide World of Sports Complex. And in July the Bananas will swing by ESPN headquarters in Bristol, Conn., earlier than a sport at Dunkin’ Park in close by Hartford.
“We are fired up to be teaming up with ESPN with our biggest partnership to date,” Bananas proprietor Jesse Cole stated. “Banana Ball has grown massively on the platform over the past few years. Now, as we launch the Banana Ball Championship League with six teams and sold out shows all over the country, we couldn’t imagine a better partnership to grow the game.”
As the Bananas’ recognition has exploded, salaries have elevated. Last 12 months gamers made $20,000 to $37,000 over a 65-game season. This 12 months the typical wage is $100,000, in line with Front Office Sports.
Banana Ball formally grew to become a league in 2025, with the Party Animals, Firefighters and Texas Tailgaters becoming a member of the enjoyable. Two extra groups had been fashioned this 12 months: The Loco Beach Coconuts, coached by former MLB participant Shane Victorino, and the Indianapolis Clowns, who say they honor the legacy of the Nineteen Forties Negro League workforce of that title.
According to Forbesthe Savannah Bananas group is valued at about $500 million, almost half of the online price of low-rung MLB franchises. The six-team BBCL will herald an estimated $100 million in income this 12 months, principally in merchandising and ticket gross sales.
The new take care of ESPN and Disney+ ought to solely enhance that quantity. Disneyland’s Main Street ought to definitely be lined with followers March 26 when — as described on the Disneyland website — “the Savannah Bananas shimmy, shake and strut their way through an unforgettable cavalcade!”
