ESPN has always had a collection of “outdoors” shows, to use the clumsy umbrella term for fishing, other wildlife encounters and “timber sports.” The conglomerate went so far as to buy fishing circuit BASS and make a big push with an outdoors division. ESPN has an outdoors site with everything from fishing columns to tips on cooking a deer heart.

Times have changed, and ESPN is dumping most of its outdoors programming. That’s more of a shock for fishing fans than the day ESPN suddenly completed its Premier League deal, and Saturday morning devotees turned on their TVs to hear a different accent.

The trend seems obvious. Versus, the network formerly known as Outdoor Life Network, has shifted its focus to cycling, MMA and more mainstream sports. Newspapers and magazines, cutting coverage across the board, haven’t spared the fishing rod.

But the sports themselves aren’t dying. Hunting license numbers have dropped a bit, though some evidence suggests those numbers rise as the economy sinks. Fishing isn’t going to dry up. For national TV coverage, outdoors sports may need to rely on some obscure cable channels — Sportsman Channel, Outdoor Channel, World Fishing Network and Pursuit — but aside from big BASS events that ESPN may still show, the sports are built for participants rather than spectators.

In any case, soccer fans should know they’re in no position to gloat here, even as the Premier League bumps the boats off the Saturday morning lineup. This news shows how quickly broadcasters can fall in and out of love with a sport. Getting the deal and keeping the deal are two different things.

(HT: Sports Business Daily)