On September 7, 1979, ESPN cable channel went on the air[1] with 24-hours of programming on the weekends and limited hours during the week. 625 cable system affiliates were signed up at launch and they had 1 million household subscribed total (out of 20 million households with cable). The channel's first game featured the Milwaukee Schlitzes and the Kentucky Bourbons slow-pitch world series softball.[2]