ESPN+ has added a new niche to its programming: live car auctions.
Front Office Sports’ Ryan Glasspiegel reported Wednesday ESPN+ is the new home for Mecum Auctions. According to Glasspiegel, ESPN+ will stream Mecum’s 11 annual events, covering more than 180 hours.
The multiyear deal begins Thursday with three days of coverage from Glendale, Arizona, where 2,000 vehicles are being auctioned at State Farm Stadium.
Mecum Auctions had previously been broadcast on Warner Bros. Discovery’s Motor Trend network. NBC Sports Network and Velocity have also aired the event.
Mecum Auctions host Scott Hoke announced the move on X.
Many of you have asked about @Mecum Auctions new TV home. Happy to let you know that we’ll be on @ESPNPlus starting tomorrow March 20, 3-9pm ET from Glendale AZ! pic.twitter.com/erOGhQvFLa
— Scott Hoke (@ScottHoke1) March 19, 2025
“The thought was we needed to expose the collector car hobby and Mecum Auctions to more than just the traditional hardcore car enthusiasts, to bring new eyeballs to what we do,” Mecum’s CEO Dave Magers told FOS.
“That worked very well for us until NBC Sports no longer existed, and we went to Motor Trend, back to the traditional car audience, always thinking that we would relish the idea to go back to a more broadened sports network. Of course, when you start talking about sports, the No. 1 name that comes up is the ESPN family. The other thing we’re very excited about is providing our auctions on what we think is the future of broadcasting — streaming.”
While many people wouldn’t consider a car auction akin to a sporting event, these auctions can get brutally competitive, as witnessed by this scene from Mecum Kissimmee in January.
This was the most incredible and intense car auction I have ever seen‼️@mecum_auctions had the entire crowd rallying behind the 2 millionaires duking it out at the worlds largest collector car auction. Back and forth, back and forth…SOLD for $6.4 million dollars!! 💥💰🙌… pic.twitter.com/lE4WJF5VFC
— Brian McCauley (@Dallas_Mortgage) January 21, 2025
Magers told FOS that the younger demographic of ESPN+ is a good match for the auction company.
“About three years ago, we started to see a younger demographic showing up at our auctions—the 25-to-35 group,” Magers said. “We believe that the demographic on ESPN+ will broaden the base, so it won’t just be the older traditional car collectors. What’s interesting about that younger demo is of course we’re all interested in the cars we grew up with, and the cars from 1990 to 2010 or so also interest them, but the younger generation is also very interested in the ’50s, ’60s, and ’70s American muscle cars.”
About Arthur Weinstein
Arthur spends his free time traveling around the U.S. to sporting events, state and national parks, and in search of great restaurants off the beaten path.