The CW is taking its first steps into tennis broadcasting.
The Nexstar-owned broadcast network has announced a deal to televise the MGM Slam, a made-for-TV tennis event to air on March 1 from T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas. The MGM Slam is the spiritual successor to the Netflix Slam, which aired in 2024 as one of the streamer’s first live sporting events. In 2025, the event aired on sports streaming platform DAZN.
This year’s event will feature eight male players: Taylor Fritz, Tommy Paul, Nick Kyrgios, Casper Ruud, Gael Monfils, Lorenzo Musetti, Alexander Bublik, and Joao Fonseca.
Play-by-play announcer Ted Robinson, who has done work for The CW’s Pac-12 coverage in the past, will call the matches alongside ESPN tennis analyst Chris McKendry.
“The MGM Slam adds yet another world-class sport in tennis to The CW’s rapidly expanding sports lineup,” Mike Perman, The CW’s SVP of Sports, said in a press release. “We are thrilled to welcome passionate tennis fans from across the country to experience this high-stakes, fast-paced tournament featuring many of the top-ranked men in the world.”
The CW has slowly but surely added a fair number of live sporting events to its programming lineup. Most notably, the network carries ACC football and basketball games, Pac-12 football, NASCAR’s O’Reilly Auto Parts Series (formerly the Xfinity Series), and WWE NXT.
Last year, Nexstar said that its increase in sports programming on The CW has put the network on the path towards profitability. Nearly 40% of The CW’s programming last year was sports-related. One-off events like the MGM Slam help incrementally build The CW into a true destination for live sports.
The winner of the event will take home a $1 million cash prize. It will air on Sunday, March 1, from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m. ET.
About Drew Lerner
Drew Lerner is a staff writer for Awful Announcing and an aspiring cable subscriber. He previously covered sports media for Sports Media Watch. Future beat writer for the Oasis reunion tour.