The hosts of the Acquired podcast revealed that ESPN, Disney's 'other' business, was the perfect multidecade funding source for major acquisitions and theme parks. What do Luke Skywalker, Tony Stark and Buzz Lightyear all have in common at The Walt Disney Company? They all came from Bristol, Connecticut—not literally, but through ESPN's massive cash flows that powered acquisitions bringing three of the greatest film franchises into Disney's kingdom.

ESPN's cash flow helped build Disney parks in Hong Kong and Shanghai, plus financed major renovations like California Adventure in Anaheim and Hollywood Studios in Florida. More recently, ESPN cash flow also helped fund the creation of the streaming service Disney+.

In recent years ESPN has seen profit declines amid changes in viewing habits and rising costs for sports rights. But all told, we estimate that ESPN has generated close to $75 billion of operating profit over the past 30 years—several times the combined cost of Pixar, Marvel, Lucasfilm AND the Shanghai and Hong Kong parks.

As the network's famed college basketball commentator Dick Vitale would say, 'That's awesome, baby!'