Account Setup • ESPN Manual Import

How to Find Your ESPN Fantasy Cookies

ESPN Fantasy requires a manual cookie-based setup. This guide shows you how to find the espn_s2 and SWID values in Chrome, Firefox, and Safari.

Before you start

Use a desktop browser — the developer tools required are not available in the ESPN mobile app.
Do not use incognito/private mode — ESPN cookies may not be present in private browsing sessions.
Cookies expire periodically — if your connection stops working, return to this page and repeat the steps to get fresh values.

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Chrome & Edge

Open fantasy.espn.com in Chrome or Edge and sign in to your account.

Press F12 (or Ctrl+Shift+I on Windows, Cmd+Option+I on Mac) to open DevTools.

Click the Application tab at the top of the DevTools panel. If you don't see it, click the » arrow to find hidden tabs.

In the left sidebar, expand Cookies and click https://www.espn.com.

In the cookie list, find the row named espn_s2. Click it and copy the full value from the Value field at the bottom.

Next, find the row named SWID. Copy the value — it should look like {XXXXXXXX-XXXX-XXXX-XXXX-XXXXXXXXXXXX} with curly braces included.

Return to your War Room account page and paste both values into the ESPN setup form.

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Firefox

Open fantasy.espn.com in Firefox and sign in.

Press F12 (or Ctrl+Shift+I) to open the Browser Console. Click the Storage tab.

In the left panel, expand Cookies and select https://www.espn.com.

Find espn_s2 in the Name column. Double-click the Value cell to select and copy the full cookie string.

Find SWID and copy its value, including the { } curly braces.

Paste both into your account page ESPN setup form.

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Safari (Mac)

First enable developer tools: go to Safari → Settings → Advanced and check "Show features for web developers".

Open fantasy.espn.com and sign in.

Press Cmd+Option+I to open the Web Inspector. Click the Storage tab.

Expand Cookies in the left panel and select espn.com.

Find espn_s2 and copy the Value. Then find SWID and copy its value including the curly braces.

Return to your account page and paste both values into the ESPN setup form.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why do I need to do this manually? Why isn't there a one-click login?

ESPN Fantasy does not offer a public OAuth API for third-party apps. The cookie-based method is the only way to access private league data without ESPN's direct partnership. Yahoo, by contrast, has an official API that allows proper OAuth integration.

How long do ESPN cookies last?

ESPN session cookies can expire anywhere from a few days to a few weeks depending on your browser settings and activity. If your War Room ESPN connection stops returning data, simply repeat the steps above to get fresh cookie values and reconnect.

Is it safe to share my ESPN cookies with War Room?

Your cookie values are encrypted before being stored in our database. They are never logged to our server console and never returned to the browser after the initial connection. We use them only to read your ESPN league data — the same way ESPN's own website does. You can disconnect and permanently remove your stored values from the account page at any time.

I can't find the espn_s2 cookie. What should I try?

Make sure you are logged in to ESPN before opening DevTools. The espn_s2 cookie is only present when you have an active ESPN session. Try refreshing the page after logging in, then re-check the cookies list. Also ensure you are looking at cookies for espn.com — not just the current page's domain.

My SWID doesn't have curly braces — is that correct?

No. The SWID cookie value should always be in the format {XXXXXXXX-XXXX-XXXX-XXXX-XXXXXXXXXXXX} including the curly braces. If you don't see braces, make sure you're copying the full value and not just part of it. Try double-clicking the value field to select all.

I connected successfully but my team name shows as "—". What happened?

Team name matching in private leagues depends on how ESPN structures the league data. In some leagues the team-to-owner mapping isn't directly available. We extract the league name reliably — team name may show a fallback or require a refresh. This is a known limitation of phase 1 and will be improved.

Ready to connect your ESPN league?

Head back to your account page and use the ESPN setup panel to enter your cookie values.

Go to Account Page