PROJECT:
ESPN FANTASY HALL OF FAME
ROLE:
LEAD UX DESIGNER
DATE:
JUNE 2026 - AUG. 2026
LOCATION:
SF, CA
ESPN Fantasy Hall of Fame
overview.
ESPN Fantasy partnered with ESPN’s Editorial Creative Studio to launch an interactive Hall of Fame celebrating legendary careers and unforgettable single-game performances from more than 30 years of fantasy football.
Two weeks into my internship, I was asked to lead the project from an open-ended brief through launch. Over eight weeks, I defined the experience, established its creative direction, designed the responsive interface, built an interactive prototype, and coordinated execution across disciplines.
defining the experience.
The project began with 18 inductees, an August 24 launch date, and an open-ended brief. As lead designer, I defined an experience that could introduce two inductees during the Fantasy Football Marathon, then reveal one each remaining week of the season.
→ A scalable visual system
I developed a collectible-card system inspired by sports memorabilia and the lasting recognition of a Hall of Fame. Blue player cards and green moment cards distinguish the two categories using ESPN Fantasy’s existing color palette.
→ A foundation for future seasons
The system was designed to support future Hall of Fame classes and create opportunities to bring collectible cards into fans’ leagues and rosters.
→ An experience built around discovery
I structured the site around a cinematic landing experience, collectible card grid, roster-style index, and individual inductee stories. Cards flip to reveal stories and statistics, while sealed packs build anticipation for upcoming releases.
making every induction feel significant.
For first-time visitors and returning fans, a full-screen Rive sequence turns each induction into a cinematic reveal. Fans click to open a sealed pack, triggering the athlete’s card, key statistics, and archival photos to cascade across the screen before the card settles into the Hall.
I worked with motion designers and UX engineers to define the sequence, timing, interactions, and transition into the growing card grid.
designing a scalable system.
The experience needed to work across desktop and mobile while accommodating a growing collection of cards, different editorial copy lengths, ESPN navigation, promotional CTA's, and weekly content updates.
I designed responsive breakpoints, reusable components, card states, detail views, and navigation behavior in Figma. I also introduced an index view that gives fans a compact alternative to browsing the visual card grid.
Throughout the process, I balanced the project’s new visual identity with established ESPN and Fantasy design foundations.
prototyping the vision.
I used Claude Code and GitLab to create a working proof of concept during the first week. Within two weeks, I had translated the concept into an interactive prototype that established the site’s architecture, interactions, and overall flow.
Because the prototype could not move directly into production, I refined the experience in Figma before bringing the polished designs back into the coded prototype.
By engineering handoff, the prototype closely represented the intended final experience. Together with the Figma specifications, it gave engineering a clear reference for building the production site.
outcome.
The ESPN Fantasy Football Hall of Fame launched during the Fantasy Football Marathon, three days after my internship ended. Randy Moss and Jamaal Charles became its first inductees.
The launch was enthusiastically received by ESPN collaborators and the athletes involved. Editorial partners described the experience as bringing a long-held idea to life beyond what they had imagined.
The companion launch coverage generated more than 300,000 page views across ESPN.com, the ESPN app, and the Fantasy app, creating a strong foundation for an experience designed to return annually.
takeaways.
Curiosity can be a form of leadership. I facilitated 2-3 weekly checkpoints across product, engineering, editorial, motion, visual design, UX prototyping, and photo editing. By understanding each collaborator’s expertise, building trust, and maintaining clear creative direction, I brought their contributions together into one cohesive experience.
Ambiguity needs structure. Frequent communication helped the team respond to shifting requirements and dependencies. If I led the project again, I would establish a shared written source of truth earlier.
Prototypes can communicate what static screens cannot. The coded prototype made the intended pacing, motion, and behavior tangible, while the Figma system supplied the precision engineering needed for production.
