The thrill of victory and the agony of defeat was the once dramatic and proud opening for ABC, which at one time was the self-proclaimed “Worldwide Leader in Sports Television.” The promotional video was recognizable with a skier perilously crashing as he reached the bottom of the jump on cue with the announcer as he voiced the words.

ESPN, owned by Disney and ABC, has since claimed the crown as the sports leader as it has come to televise all of the major sports during its ascent to the throne.

In spanning the globe to bring viewers the constant variety of sports has forced the network to layoff thousands of jobs, including some of its biggest names.

In a move that surprised many sports fans and underscored the challenges for media companies, ESPN laid off broadcasters in hopes of saving money.

ESPN said in a statement that it needed to cut costs “in the area of public-facing commentator salaries,” including “a small group of job cuts in the short term.”

Suzy Kolber, an NFL reporter and the host of the pregame show “Monday Night Countdown,” publicly acknowledged on Twitter that she had been laid off. Jeff Van Gundy, the former coach of the New York Knicks who had been an NBA analyst since 2007, was also let go. Jalen Rose, a studio analyst and a member of the University of Michigan’s storied “Fab Five,” was also among those laid off.

In all, about 20 commentators were laid off, and the company told staff members that it would renegotiate some contracts at reduced salaries or let some expire at the end of their terms.

The news comes one day after National Geographic announced its second round of layoffs this year, joining The Los Angeles Times, Vox Media, BuzzFeed and The Washington Post on the list of media companies that have tightened their belts recently.

Disney, ESPN’s parent company, has struggled to stem the tide of losses related to its streaming services as traditional television viewing declines. In May, Disney announced on its earnings call that revenue from its networks, which include ESPN, had fallen 7 percent. 

Earlier this year, the company’s chief executive, Robert A. Iger, announced a plan to cut $5.5 billion in costs by eliminating 7,000 jobs, which is 4 percent of Disney’s worldwide work force.

Kolber said in her announcement that “longevity for a woman in this business is something I’m especially proud of.” Her company biography states that she has been “widely praised for elevating the NFL sideline role” and notes that she was the first woman to win the Maxwell Football Club’s Sports Broadcaster of the Year Award. In 2019, she was inducted into the Philadelphia Sports Hall of Fame.

Van Gundy has become a familiar voice in professional basketball. He was courtside for coverage on both ESPN and ABC, working with one of his former players, Mark Jackson, and Mike Breen to call some of the biggest NBA games. He provided commentary during the recent NBA finals.

Rose first gained national attention as a point guard at the University of Michigan, where his team reached back-to-back NCAA Division I men’s basketball tournament finals in 1992 and 1993, losing both times. His star-studded recruiting class was known as the Fab Five, and Michigan made history as the first team to start five freshmen in the Final Four. He reached the 2000 NBA finals with the Indiana Pacers. Rose had been with ESPN since 2007.

So, if the worldwide leader can’t make it with its flashy studio sets and deep pocket owners, what hope do others have when it comes to the bottom line. Then again, ESPN put itself as the news instead of simply reporting it. Do we really need all those hours and hours of analysis? There was a time when ESPN reveled in covering Triple-A baseball.

Perhaps, If ESPN focused more on content rather than on personalities, it would have been just fine.