If you thought the ESPN8: The Ocho gimmick had run its course for the Worldwide Leader, think again.
On Wednesday, ESPN announced that 30 new sports will be making their ESPN8: The Ocho debut as the ESPN family of networks prepares wall-to-wall coverage of unconventional sports competitions from Thursday, July 31 to Sunday, August 3. It’s the ninth year ESPN has set aside a chunk of summer programming to pay homage to Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story, the film that introduced ESPN8: The Ocho to the world.
Some of the notable sports making their Ocho debut include “Coffin Wars,” “Goat Racing Championships,” “2025 Bubble Gum Blowing Championship,” “T-Rex World Championship Races,” and dozens of other niche sports that you had no clue existed.
In total, ESPN will air over 65 hours of Ocho programming throughout the weekend. The vast majority will be housed on ESPN2, with certain competitions like a Savannah Bananas game and the American Cornhole League World Championship getting the main ESPN treatment.
Fan favorites like ultimate frisbee and kickball also return this year.
ESPN will also utilize its Wide World of Sports complex in Orlando, Florida to bring a number of live competitions to viewers. 11 events, including Major League Paintball and the Pop-A-Shot National Championship, will be played on-site and air live. Clinton Yates, Arda Öcal, and Cristina Alexander will host The Ocho Show from Orlando to offer interviews with some of the competitors.
It’s hard to blame ESPN for leaning into The Ocho at this point. There’s the nostalgia factor, of course, given that Dodgeball came out in 2004. But, also, there’s not much other programming out there this time of year anyway. Might as well sacrifice one weekend of ESPN2’s schedule to have a bit of fun.