CHICAGO (Reuters) - ESPN, Walt Disney Co's sports cable television network, outbidding Fox Sports, will pay $500 million for a four-year deal to broadcast several popular college football bowl games.

ESPN said on Tuesday the deal with the largest college football schools covers 15 Bowl Championship Series (BCS) games from 2011 to 2014. They include the Fiesta, Orange and Sugar Bowl games each season, and the BCS national championship game in 2011, 2012 and 2013.

The new deal will shift the popular bowl games to cable TV from News Corp's Fox broadcast network, a move some critics say will hurt the college game's exposure. However, others said the deal was long anticipated.

"I don't think every major sports property is going to move to cable ... but it's understandable when you look at ESPN's dual revenue stream and the fact that they are now in 98 million homes," said Neal Pilson, a former president of CBS Sports who now operates a sports consulting firm.

Broadcast networks like Fox reach 112 million homes, he said.

Terms of the deal were not officially disclosed, but a source familiar with the bidding said ESPN's bid of $500 million topped Fox Sports by $100 million. Fox's current four-year deal expires after the 2009 season, which includes bowl games in 2010.

The BCS is a five-game arrangement for post-season college football that is managed by the 11 large conferences and Notre Dame.

"The BCS will thrive on ESPN," George Bodenheimer, president of ESPN and ABC Sports, said in a statement.

BCS coordinator Jim Swofford was unconcerned about cable's smaller reach.

"Currently, over 98 million homes receive ESPN," he said in a statement. "With the ever-changing technology and as we look toward January 2011, when the first games in this package will be played, we know that the number of households that receive ESPN will only continue to grow."

Fox Sports said late Monday it had decided not to match ESPN's offer.

"Even with today's vast economic uncertainties, FOX Sports made a very competitive bid to keep broadcasting BCS games free to every home in America, one that included a substantial rights fee increase, and certainly as much as any over-the-air network could responsibly risk," Fox said in a statement.

"Unfortunately, the university presidents and BCS commissioners were not satisfied and they've decided to take their jewel events to pay television," Fox added.

The deal covers television, radio, digital, international and marketing rights

ABC, also a Disney-owned network, has a separate deal to air the Rose Bowl game.

(Editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)