UAAP Varsity Channel
The UAAP Varsity Channel is a Philippine collegiate sports channel owned by Cignal TV in partnership with University Athletic Association of the Philippines. It is the official broadcast channel of the said athletic league which airs different sporting events.[1]
| Country | Philippines |
|---|---|
| Broadcast area | Nationwide |
| Network | TV5 One Sports |
| Programming | |
| Language(s) | English (main) Filipino (secondary) |
| Picture format | 1080i (HDTV) (downscaled to 480i for the SDTV feed) |
| Ownership | |
| Owner | Cignal TV, Inc. (MediaQuest Holdings) University Athletic Association of the Philippines |
| Sister channels | |
| History | |
| Launched | September 8, 2021 |
| Links | |
| Website | cignal.tv/uaap-varsity-channel |
| Availability | |
| Satellite | |
| Cignal (Nationwide) | Channel 263 (HD) |
| SatLite (Nationwide) | Channel 55 (SD) |
| Streaming media | |
| Cignal Play | Available on the Cignal Play website or via mobile application |
History
In October 2020, Cignal TV formally signed a broadcast agreement with the University Athletic Association of the Philippines (UAAP) for the coverage rights of every UAAP varsity sporting events through 2026 on TV5 and One Sports in addition of the upcoming dedicated channel on the Cignal service.[2][3]
On September 8, 2021, Cignal TV formally launched the UAAP Varsity Channel at 4:00pm (Philippine Time) with an archive footage of the 65th season's men's basketball finals between longtime rivals Ateneo Blue Eagles and De La Salle Green Archers.[4][5]
Programming and features
As part of the agreement, the channel will cover (although not all) selected niche collegiate sporting events in addition to its primary events (basketball, cheerdance competition, volleyball and football). Aside from live coverage, it will also air its own original supplementary programming, as well as the UAAP Classics, a collection of archive footages from the past seasons of the UAAP (most of them were covered by the now-defunct ABS-CBN Sports).
References
- "New channels on Cignal starting September 2021". Cignal TV. Retrieved 2 September 2021.
- Argarin, Carl Danielle (23 October 2020). "UAAP finds new home in Cignal TV". The Manila Times.
- Ulanday, John Bryan (23 October 2020). "UAAP inks multi-year TV deal with Cignal". The Philippine Star.
- "UAAP and Cignal TV launch first-ever Varsity Channel". BusinessWorld. 8 September 2021.
- "Cignal TV, UAAP announce launch of Varsity Channel". ESPN. 8 September 2021.
