Super Bowl LXI is heading to a galaxy far, far away. ESPN, Lucasfilm, Disney and the NFL announced that the upcoming championship game on Feb. 14, 2027, will feature a live, real-time animated alternate presentation set inside the Star Wars universe.
Billed as “Star Wars Funday Football,” the broadcast will stream on Disney+ and the ESPN App while also airing on Disney Channel and Disney XD. The production marks the first animated alternate broadcast in Super Bowl history, according to reports from Deadline and Forbes.
Translating Gridiron Action to Animation
The alternate broadcast will recreate every snap of Super Bowl LXI live from SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California. On-field players will be turned into digital avatars, while iconic Star Wars figures sub in during critical moments alongside Easter eggs tailored for franchise fans. Anthony Daniels, who has portrayed the protocol droid C-3PO since the original 1977 film, will return to voice the character for the telecast.
To produce the spectacle, ESPN will rely on data visualization tools developed by Sony’s Beyond Sports. The system pairs player-tracking metrics from the league’s Next Gen Stats with optical tracking from Sony’s Hawk-Eye Innovations, allowing the virtual environment to reflect real-time gameplay rather than scripted scenes.
In addition to reaching domestic audiences across linear and streaming platforms, the telecast will be available live in overseas territories, with on-demand replays expanding its footprint to more than 155 international markets, Forbes reported.
Building Out the Megacast
The Star Wars presentation is part of a broad multi-network rollout for Super Bowl LXI, which will be the first Super Bowl produced by ESPN and the first to air on ABC since 2006. The primary broadcast will feature commentators Joe Buck, Troy Aikman, Lisa Salters and Laura Rutledge on ABC, ESPN and Disney+. Spanish-language coverage will air on ESPN Deportes and Univision, alongside streaming on Disney+.
Viewers will also have access to several other alternate feeds across Disney networks:
- A special edition of the “ManningCast” featuring Peyton and Eli Manning on ESPN2
- A commentary-focused “Field Pass” telecast hosted by Pat McAfee on ESPNU
- A data-oriented “Playbook” broadcast utilizing Next Gen Stats on NFL Network
The concept expands Disney’s prior experiments with animated football broadcasts. ESPN previously aired “Toy Story Funday Football” in October 2023, which earned three Sports Emmy Awards, followed by Simpsons and Monsters, Inc. editions in December 2024 and December 2025.
A Milestone Year for the Franchise
The broadcast aligns with the 50th anniversary celebration of the Star Wars franchise in 2027. Just five days after the Super Bowl, a restored edition of the original 1977 movie will return to theaters for a limited run beginning Feb. 19.
Disney has also started integrating Star Wars elements into current sports programming. Beginning Tuesday, Oct. 20, ESPN’s daily show SC+ on Disney+ will introduce “Hyperspace Highlights” using Monday Night Football footage. Starting Oct. 26, the program will feature an animated Darth Vader conducting interviews with NFL athletes playing in Monday night games.
ESPN and Lucasfilm have not yet announced the alternate broadcast’s commentary team, animated stadium settings or the full list of characters scheduled to appear.
