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ESPN and Poker Central Reveal 2019 WSOP Main Event Broadcast Schedule

Over the last few weeks, we’ve brought you details on the upcoming 2019 World Series of Poker. On Wednesday, WSOP officials released the broadcast schedule for the 2019 WSOP Main Event. As has been customary over the last few years, the Main Event will be broadcast live with all the action being split between both live and streaming mediums.

Every Day of the Main Event to Be Broadcast Live

On Wednesday, both Poker Central and ESPN released their preliminary schedule for live event coverage for the 50th annual World Series of Poker. This year, the WSOP Main Event will run from July 3rd through July 16th and every day of action will be broadcast between ESPN, ESPN2, and PokerGO.

ESPN and Poker Central have been in partnership for the last couple of years and that partnership will continue in 2019. ESPN will broadcast no fewer than 40 hours of WSOP coverage along with 90 hours of edited television episodes. Also, PokerGO will broadcast multiple WSOP bracelet events throughout the series, including the WSOP Main Event.

This year, WSOP Main Event broadcasts will feature live on both ESPN and ESPN2 with ESPN2 carrying nearly every starting flight and half of Day 2. The WSOP Main Event final table will again be split into three days with the first day of action commencing on July 14. The final table will play down to six players.

The final two days of action will move to ESPN with Day 2 playing down to three players and Day 3 playing to a champion. According to JR McCabe, chief digital officer at Poker Central, “For the third straight year, Poker Central and ESPN will deliver expansive coverage of the WSOP Main Event to a continually growing audience across multiple platforms. We again look forward to bringing poker’s pinnacle event to fans around the world.”

ESPN senior VP of programming and acquisitions Rob Temple also commented, stating, “ESPN’s established relationship with the World Series of Poker and Poker Central always brings our audience the top content from this event. It is a consistent hit for ESPN and we take pride in the extensive broadcast coverage we provide the fans from this exciting, fan-favorite tournament.”

Remaining Schedule to Be Released at a Later Date

When WSOP Main Event action is not being broadcast by ESPN or ESPN2, PokerGO will take over and live stream coverage as they have in past years. A full schedule for the Main Event is forthcoming as is the live streaming for other bracelet event final tables.

PokerGO has live streamed a number of final tables at the WSOP in recent years and produce a high quality product that rivals ESPN broadcasts. The great thing about PokerGO streaming bracelet final tables is that they have the flexibility to highlight any event they wish, which is helpful when something special arises, such as Doyle Brunson making a final table in the only bracelet event he played in last year.

For this year’s broadcasts, WSOP executive director Ty Stewart commented, stating, “Significant video coverage is one of our key cornerstones. We’re grateful to Poker Central and ESPN for continuing to expand the reach of WSOP to today’s platforms and fueling the interest of tomorrow’s champions.”

The 2019 World Series of Poker will run from May 28 through July 26, 2019 and so far is featuring 80 live events, including the WSOP Main Event and a “Mini Main Event” for the first time in history. Online bracelet events have yet to be announced, likely due to the new opinion released by the DOJ regarding the Wire Act. A final schedule for both bracelet events and final table broadcasts are expected sometime in the next few weeks.

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