In one of the most bizarre yet ambitious announcements of late, Disney+ and ESPN+ are teaming up to offer something unexpected.
On October 1st at 9:30am US-EST, the American NFL teams Atlanta Falcons and Jacksonville Jaguars will face-off with each other in London.
When they do, both streamers are set to offer a “fully animated alternative broadcast in real-time” which will see the floor of Andy’s room turned into the pitch and toy footballers playing out every play in nearly real time with thanks to player tracking technology provided by the NFL’s Next Gen Stats and Beyond Sports.
In addition, the telecast will feature a special half-time show featuring the Duke Caboom character performing a special motorcycle jump.
The broadcast is considered the most ambitious alternate-feed telecast of an NFL game to date. Drew Carter, Booger McFarland and 12-year-old reporter Pepper Persley will call the game with their movements shown through motion capture.
Familiar Toy Story characters such as Woody, Buzz, Bo Peep, the aliens, Forky, Jesse and Rex, will be visible on the sidelines and in other elements of the broadcast.
A replay will be available for a limited time on Disney+ and NFL+ and 95 territories worldwide will be able to access the animated presentation either live or via replay.
