ESPN Promotes Freddy Rolon to SVP, Programming and Scheduling

ESPN’s Freddy Rolon has been promoted to the role of Senior Vice President of Programming and Scheduling, now responsible for the overall content for ESPN’s linear networks.

What’s Happening:

ESPN has promoted Freddy Rolón to Senior Vice President, Programming and Scheduling, it was announced today by Burke Magnus, President, Programming and Original Content, ESPN. Rolón, who was previously Vice President, Programming & Scheduling, will continue to report to Magnus.
Rolón is responsible for leading the overall content strategy and schedule for ESPN’s linear networks, including ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU and ESPNEWS. He will also continue to oversee all aspects of the ESPN Deportes’ linear and digital business.
In his tenure at ESPN, Rolón has played an integral role in the development of the company’s content strategy to reach bilingual Hispanics consuming sports content across all of ESPN’s English-language platforms. He works closely with ESPN’s production, audio, and digital teams to maximize the relevance and appeal of ESPN’s English-language products for U.S. Hispanic fans.
Rolón, who joined ESPN in 2004, held the position of Vice President & General Manager, ESPN Deportes from 2016 to 2020. From 2011-2016, he served as Vice President of ESPN Deportes Programming and Business Initiatives from 2011-2016. In that role, he was responsible for overseeing all programming for ESPN Deportes, including acquisitions, development and scheduling. Prior to that, he served as Senior Director of ESPN Deportes Radio and Business Initiatives, where he was instrumental in developing a five-year plan for the network to achieve growth targets through a new sales structure and reinvestment in US-specific programming.
Before officially joining ESPN in 2004, Rolón was an intern for ESPN International in the summer of 2003. After completing his MBA, he joined ESPN as Senior Manager of Marketing for ESPN Deportes. He was promoted to Senior Director, Marketing and Integration of ESPN Radio (2005-2007), where he oversaw all the marketing efforts for ESPN Radio and ESPN Deportes Radio.
Rolón has received numerous accolades for his work in the media industry, including being named to The National Association for Multi-ethnicity in Communications (NAMIC) Most Influential Minorities in Media (2016, 2017, 2018, and 2019, 2020) and being named to the 2017 Alumni’s Society’s Top 25 Latino Leaders.
In 2018, Rolón was named to the board of The National Association for Multi-ethnicity in Communications (NAMIC), joining a distinguished group of executives of color supporting NAMIC’s work on multicultural diversity, equity and inclusion in the communications industry. He is also on the board of Partnership with Children, a nonprofit that provides critical mental health services for students, engages families in the school community, and supports schools in communities across all five boroughs of New York City.
Rolón graduated from Wesleyan University with a Bachelor of Arts in economics and government and later received a Master of Business Administration from the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth.

What They’re Saying:

Burke Magnus, President, Programming and Original Content, ESPN: “The pause in sports caused by the COVID-19 break brought an unprecedented level of unpredictability due to the ever-changing landscape, thousands of cancelled events, altered or postponed seasons, and more. Throughout that time, one factor remained constant – Freddy’s steady hand. While new to his role in Programming and Scheduling when the pandemic started, he led with excellence, and his strategic thinking guided us during a very tumultuous period.”