John Kerry being interviewed by the network before a Capitals game at the
Verizon Center February 6, 2014. being interviewed during a Capitals game April 15, 2010 The network was launched as
Home Team Sports (
HTS) on April 4, 1984. Originally owned by
Westinghouse Broadcasting, it was one of the first regional sports networks in the United States with rights to the
Washington Bullets,
Washington Capitals, and
Baltimore Orioles. (each teams' road games were shown over the air on
independent station WDCA-TV (channel 20, now a
MyNetworkTV affiliate). In 1988, the network affiliated with
SportsChannel, picking up their
NHL package. In 1989, HTS additionally became an affiliate of the
Prime Sports Network. In 1996, the network was folded into
CBS Cable, a cable television division formed through
Westinghouse Electric Corporation's merger with
CBS. In February 1997, Home Team Sports became an affiliate of
Fox Sports Networks, a group of regional sports networks formed the previous year through
News Corporation's partial acquisition of Prime through a joint venture with that network's parent
Liberty Media. In 1996, Fox/Liberty had tried to secure rights to the Bullets, Capitals, and Orioles, which would have led to the launch of a new RSN. Fox/Liberty originally outbid HTS but previous contracts gave HTS the
right of first refusal. Fox/Liberty filed a lawsuit against HTS which ultimately was settled. News Corporation subsequently purchased a 34% ownership interest in HTS. CBS Corporation, which remained majority owner, eventually merged into
Viacom in 1999, in a deal worth $91 billion. Shortly after Viacom completed its merger with CBS, on June 10, 2000, Viacom announced that it would sell Home Team Sports and
Minneapolis-based regional sports network
Midwest Sports Channel. One month later, on July 11, Comcast agreed to acquire a 75% ownership stake in HTS and the Midwest Sports Channel from CBS, in a deal worth approximately $150 million. News Corporation, which wanted to acquire full ownership of both networks, filed a lawsuit ten days later on July 21 in an attempt to block the sale of MSC and Home Team Sports. On September 7, 2000, as part of a settlement between the two companies, Comcast traded its equity interest in Midwest Sports Channel to News Corporation in exchange for sole ownership of Home Team Sports. The transaction was completed seven months later in mid-February 2001. The channel was relaunched as
Comcast SportsNet (CSN) Mid-Atlantic on April 4, 2001, exactly seventeen years after the network's original launch. The channel continued to carry national programming supplied by Fox Sports Net after the sale. In 2010, Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic split its website into two regional websites, and rebranded them as "Comcast SportsNet Baltimore" and "Comcast SportsNet Washington". While the websites were rebranded, the network continued to maintain a singular feed that was transmitted throughout its entire coverage area. Five years later, CSN Mid-Atlantic consolidated the two regional websites back together again as CSNMidAtlantic.com. In September 2012, Comcast SportsNet Mid-Atlantic and its sister Comcast SportsNet outlets ceased carrying Fox Sports Networks–supplied programming, after failing to reach an agreement to continue carrying FSN's nationally distributed programs. In October 2016, CSN Mid-Atlantic announced that it would extend its broadcast rights to the
Washington Capitals and
Washington Wizards through a long-term deal with the teams' owner,
Ted Leonsis. As a result,
Monumental Sports & Entertainment took an equity stake in the network, while NBCUniversal took an equity stake in the Monumental Sports Network—an over-the-top subscription service focusing on other teams owned by the company. Comcast rebranded the network as
NBC Sports Washington on October 2, 2017, as part of a larger rebranding of the Comcast SportsNet networks under the NBC Sports brand. On August 23, 2022, Monumental announced it would acquire full control of the network from Comcast for an undisclosed price. The sale was completed on September 20, 2022. On June 21, 2023, it was announced that NBC Sports Washington would rebrand as Monumental Sports Network. The name change took effect on September 12, and formally launched on September 20, 2023. The network also moved its headquarters from
Bethesda, Maryland to Washington, D.C. ==Programming==