DALLAS — Add the 2023 World Champions of Major League Baseball to the list of sports teams taking their game-day play-by-play in-house.
The Texas Rangers on Monday revealed that the club has formed a new business entity called Rangers Sports Media & Entertainment Company.
The subsidiaries of this entity will include both Rangers Sports Network (RSN), a new media venture created to produce and distribute the team’s games and other content, as well as REV Entertainment, the baseball club’s official sports and entertainment partner and the official booking agent for both Globe Life Field and Choctaw Stadium in Arlington, Tex.
Neil Leibman will serve as Chairman of Rangers Sports Media & Entertainment Company, gaining oversight of both Rangers Sports Network and REV Entertainment.
Leibman is part of the ownership group for the Rangers and will relinquish his previous team responsibilities as President of Business Operations and Chief Operating Officer to take on the role.
At the same time, Jim Cochrane has been promoted by the Rangers to Executive Vice President and Chief Business Officer. The 28-year veteran of the Rangers front office will continue to have oversight of all business revenue areas for the club, and additional responsibilities for other departments including marketing and ballpark operations.
Rangers Sports Network (RSN) will oversee production and distribution for game broadcasts and will be made available within the Rangers TV territory through select broadcast television, cable, satellite, and digital streaming platforms.
“RSN encompasses all aspects of game production, including the selection of on-air talent, camera and audio resources, direction of broadcast technical aspects, and behind-the-scenes staffing,” the Rangers said. “RSN’s production capabilities will also be utilized in content creation for in-game elements and other potential placement.”
“One of the main goals when seeking solutions for Rangers television broadcasts was to give fans more access to our games,” Rangers Majority Owner Ray Davis said in a statement. “We determined that the best path toward providing our fans with more options is to handle many of the broadcast obligations in-house. By forming Rangers Sports Network to address the various production responsibilities for team broadcasts and content, we feel the entity is in a strong position to deliver for Rangers fans as well as execute other potential broadcast opportunities in the future.”
Davis added that REV Entertainment “has served as a valuable asset for the organization since it was launched in 2021, and it will continue to grow under this new structure.” REV helped lure international pop superstar P!nk to Globe Life Field in 2024, as part of a U.S. stadium tour.
The announcement follows a January 15 move by the Rangers to partner with APMC, owner of the new Victory+ direct-to-consumer streaming app. This makes it the official home for Texas Rangers regional television broadcasts, beginning with the upcoming 2025 season.
“The agreement with Victory+ represents the first element of the Rangers’ effort to provide fans with multiple viewing options for game broadcasts in 2025,” the team said.
The Rangers expect to announce final details regarding those options in the coming days.
— With reporting by Zachary Pollack