Rupert Murdoch's News Corporation is trying to put together a national sports network to rival ESPN, a daunting task, but then, the company does have a history of unseating cable rivals. According to Bloomberg's Andy Fixmer and Alex Sherman, News Corp. is still trying to get rights from sports organizations and TV carriers to enter a field that includes NBC Sports Network and CBS Sports Network, both of which are dwarfed by ESPN. 

Lest you doubt Murdoch's minions can pull it off, note, per Bloomberg, that Fox has already acquired the rights to the World Cup and several other big sporting events. And recall how unlikely it seemed that the upstart Fox News would prove a match to then-dominant CNN back in 1996. Of course times have changed, Fox Business isn't doing nearly as well, and there's that little phone hacking issue plaguing the company. Who knows whether plans for the channel will even go through, but if they do, it'll be a good show for fans of intra-cable network rivalries and, perhaps, for actual sports fans.

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