In the United States, sports are televised on various broadcast networks, national and specialty sports cable channels, andregional sports networks. American sports rights are estimated to be worth a total of $22.42 billion in 2019, about 44% of the total worldwide sports media market.[1] American networks are willing to pay a significant amount of money for television sports contracts because it attracts large amounts of viewership; live sport broadcasts accounted for 44 of the 50list of most watched television broadcasts in the United States in 2016.[2]
The U.S. is home to four of the top fiveprofessional sports leagues by revenue in the world:Major League Baseball (MLB),National Basketball Association (NBA),National Football League (NFL), andNational Hockey League (NHL). The NFL has the largest television contracts, and earns about $11 billion annually from its contracts withFox,CBS,NBC andESPN for the 2023 through 2033 seasons.[6] MLB earns $1.5 billion annually from its contracts signed in 2012 with ESPN, Fox, andTurner Sports (TBS) for the 2014 through 2021 seasons.[7] In 2014, the NBA signed a nine-year television deal withABC/ESPN andTNT that generates annual league television revenues of $2.66 billion beginning with the 2016–17 season,[8] while the NHL earns $625 million annually from seven-year contracts signed in 2021 with ESPN and Turner Sports to last until the 2027–28 season.[9][10]
Since the 1960s, all regular season and playoff games broadcast in the United States have been aired by national television networks. Until the broadcast contract ended in 2013, the terrestrial television networksCBS,NBC, andFox, as well as cable television'sESPN, paid a combined total of US$20.4 billion[11] to broadcast NFL games. From 2014 to 2022, the same networks paid $39.6 billion for exactly the same broadcast rights.[6] This increased to about $110 billion to air games from 2023 to 2033.[6] The NFL thus holds broadcast contracts with four companies (Paramount Global,Comcast,Fox Corporation, andESPN Inc.—which is majority owned byThe Walt Disney Company, respectively) that control a combinedmedia cross-ownership in the United States. League-ownedNFL Network, on cable television, also broadcasts a selected number of games nationally. In 2017, the NFL games attracted the top three rates for a 30-second advertisement: $699,602 forNBC Sunday Night Football, $550,709 forThursday Night Football (NBC), and $549,791 forThursday Night Football (CBS).[12]
For the2020 NFL season, two extra wild card playoff games were added to the schedule; CBS and NBC acquired rights to these new games, with both paying roughly $70 million each.[13]
Westwood One has exclusive national radio rights through an unspecified multi-year period starting in the 2022 season. As of 2022[update], Westwood One airs coverage of nationally telecast primetime games, as well as all playoff games and other NFL events.[24][25]
Sirius XM has exclusive satellite radio rights to home, away, and, if available, national broadcast radio feeds of all games. It also has rights to online streaming of games for its subscribers starting with the 2011 season.
College football coverage is dependent on negotiations between the broadcaster and the college football conference or team. The televised games may change from year-to-year depending on which teams are having a strong season, although some traditionalcollege rivalry games are broadcast each year. Some games are traditionally associated with a specific event or holiday, and viewing the game itself can become a holiday tradition for fans.
Post-seasonbowl games, including theCollege Football Playoff, are presently all televised, most of them by theESPN networks.[26] The television broadcast rights to all six CFP bowls and the National Championship are owned byESPN through at least the 2025 season.[27] In November 2012, ESPN reached a 12-year deal to broadcast the remaining three bowls, the championship game, as well as shoulder programming such as ranking shows; as a whole, the contract is valued at around $470 million per year, or nearly $5.7 billion for the life of the contract.[28]
TNT: TwoCollege Football Playoff first-round games (2024–present; sublicensed from ESPN); two first-round games and two quarterfinal games (2026–present; sublicensed from ESPN)
Since 2023,CBS Sports Network holds the television rights to 34 games from the CFL. All games are produced byTSN.[52] Games not picked up by CBSSN, including theGrey Cup, air for free onCFL+.[53]
Sirius XM Canada's radio broadcasts of the CFL are available in the United States.[54]
The new incarnation of the XFL divided its broadcast rights betweenESPN on ABC/ESPN andFox Sports under a three-year deal. XFL games were split among ABC,Fox, ESPN, andFox Sports 1 (with a small number of games scheduled forESPN2 andFox Sports 2). ESPN was to air the championship game. TheWall Street Journal reported via inside sources that neither the broadcasters or the league made any upfront payments, but that the XFL sold the in-game sponsorship inventory. The networks covered the production costs, held the digital rights to their telecasts, and the right to sell the conventional commercial inventory during their games.[55][56]
The league filed for bankruptcy and folded when the first season was cut short due to the COVID-19 pandemic. However, during the bankruptcy process, Fox expressed interest in broadcasting games if new owners could revive the league.[57] The league was sold to a group headed by actorDwayne Johnson for $15 million.[58]
The new incarnation of the USFL divided its broadcast rights betweenNBC Sports andFox Sports, which also owns the league, under a three-year deal.Fox,Fox Sports 1,NBC andUSA Network air games as part of the agreement.Peacock previously aired exclusive games but now only airs simulcasts of games on NBC and USA. Fox and NBC air theUSFL championship game in rotation.[59] It was the first rights fee deal for alternative football league in the 21st century.[60]
As part of the merger between the XFL (broadcast rights owned by ESPN/ABC) and USFL (broadcast rights owned by Fox Sports), both media partners maintained media agreements with the new United Football League. NBC Sports, who had shared media rights with Fox for the USFL, dropped their involvement due to schedule conflicts.
In 2025, select A7FL Games of the Week including the playoffs and championship and A7FL InMotion, a weekly 30 minute show featuring a look inside the A7FL—are broadcast onFox Soul,Stadium (sports network),DAZN,Triller TV, YouTube, and A7FL.tv.
On August 28, 2012, it was announced that ESPN and Major League Baseball had agreed on a new eight-year deal that greatly increases the network's studio and game content across all of its platforms. Also it increased ESPN's average yearly payment from about $360 million to approximately $700 million.[61] ESPN also returned to broadcasting postseason baseball beginning in 2014 with one of two wild-card games each season. The network alternates airing the American League and National League wild-card games each year. It also has the rights to all potential regular-season tiebreaker games starting in 2014.[62][63]
On September 19, 2012,Sports Business Daily[64][65] reported that Major League Baseball would agree to separate eight-year television deals[66] with Fox Sports andTurner Sports[67] through the 2021 season. Fox would reportedly pay around $4 billion over eight years (close to $500 million per year) while Turner would pay around $2.8 billion over eight years (more than $300 million per year). Under the new deals, Fox andTBS's coverage would essentially be the same as in the 2007–2013 contract with the exception of Fox and TBS splitting coverage of the Division Series, which TBS has broadcast exclusively dating back to 2007. More importantly, Fox would carry some of the games (such as the Saturday afternoonGame of the Week) on its all-sports channel,Fox Sports 1. Sources also said that was possible that Fox would sell some Division Series games toMLB Network, which did end up occurring.
On November 15, 2018, Fox renewed its rights, set to end in 2022, through 2028. The contract maintains Fox's current coverage structure, but with expanded digital rights, and the commitment to air more games on the Fox broadcast network when the new deal takes effect.[68][69] Fox also committed to airing at least two of its League Championship Series games, as well as any Game 7, on the broadcast network beginning in 2019; it had been criticized for airing only Game 2 of the2018 National League Championship Series, while placing the rest on Fox Sports 1.[70]
On September 24, 2020, TBS also renewed its rights from 2022 through 2028, under which it will replace its late-season Sunday afternoon games with a season-long package of primetime games on Tuesday nights, and maintain its existing arrangements for playoff coverage. The contract also adds expanded digital rights forBleacher Report and "additionalWarnerMedia platforms".[71][72][73] ESPN would in turn renew its rights to MLB on May 13, 2021, for the 2022 to 2028 seasons; the deal ends ESPN's coverage of weeknight games, but retains its exclusive Sunday night window and playoff telecasts.[74]On March 8, 2022,Apple Inc. signed a seven-year deal with MLB for the broadcast for US$85 million per year, a total value of $595 million. This includes an annual $55 million rights fee as well as $30 million for Apple advertising. Apple has the right to exit the agreement after the first or second year.[75]On April 9, 2022,NBC Sports announced an agreement with MLB for a package of new Sunday afternoon games starting from 2022 season; those matches are broadcast exclusively onPeacock.
On February 20, 2025, ESPN and Major League Baseball announced that they have agreed to part ways following the 2025 season.[76]
Fox/FS1:[77] 26 Saturday Prime time regionalized games on Fox, 40 games on FS1; two Division Series; one League Championship Series; All-Star Game; World Series.
TBS/Max: 26 Tuesday night games throughout the season. Postseason coverage consists of two Division Series; and one League Championship Series. TNT serves as an overflow channel.[78]
ESPN: 30 regular-season games annually. This include Sunday Night Baseball, the Little League Classic and the national Opening Night telecast. In addition, will continue to carry the Home Run Derby and can televise up to 10 Spring Training games. ESPN will have the rights to exclusively broadcast all MLB Wild Card Series starting in 2022. ESPN+ will continue to televise select MLB games, subject to blackout restrictions, nearly every day of the regular season.[74][79]
MLB Network: Airs 26 non-exclusiveMLB Network Showcase games, and Spanish coverage of TBS's playoff coverage. The channel also carries various other games simulcast from local broadcasters.
Additionally,local or regional broadcasters contract with the MLB team in their area for the right to broadcast a number of regular season games locally, primarily onregional sports networks. Games broadcast locally or regionally are available nationwide (except those affected by local blackout restrictions) on the subscription-basedMLB.TV andMLB Extra Innings services.
MLB teams also contract with local broadcasters to air games on radio. Several teams have multiple affiliates covering those games. The flagship stations can air all games of the teams they contract with, other affiliates must allow ESPN radio coverage to air during the postseason.
Regular-seasonNationally televised regular-season games are contracted through each conference and appear onCBS Sports Network, ESPN/ESPN2/ESPNU, FS1, and FS2, along with several school- and conference-specific networks (Big Ten Network,SEC Network andACC Network).
ESPN has rights to broadcast the entireLittle League World Series, as well as the finals of the eight regional tournaments that determine the U.S. representatives in that competition. It distributes coverage among its family of networks and ABC; the final is aired onABC.
On July 24, 2024, the NBA announced new 11-year agreements withESPN/ABC,NBC Sports, andAmazon Prime Video that will last from the 2025–26 to 2035–36 seasons.[83]
ABC/ESPN/ESPN+: 80 regular-season games per season, including more than 20 games on ABC (generally on Saturday nights with NBA Saturday Primetime and on Sunday afternoons with NBA Sunday Showcase) and up to 60 games on ESPN (generally on Wednesday nights and, on occasion, Friday nights). ABC/ESPN/ESPN+ will continue to telecast all five NBA games onChristmas Day and provide exclusive national coverage of the final day of the regular season, the NBA All-Star Celebrity Game, NBA Draft and NBA Draft Lottery; During the playoffs, ABC/ESPN will telecast approximately 18 games in the first two rounds each year and one of the two Conference Finals series in 10 of the 11 years; exclusive rights to theNBA Finals on ABC through 2036.[84]
NBC/Peacock: 100 regular season games on Sunday, Mondays, Tuesday nights; All-Star Weekend; In the playoffs, NBC and/or Peacock will telecast approximately 28 games in the first two rounds and one of the two Conference Finals series in six of the 11 years on a rotating basis with Prime Video, beginning with the 2025–26 season. Home ofUSA Basketball Senior Men's and Women's National Team games beginning in 2025.[85]
Prime Video: 66 regular-season games on Thursday after NFL season ends, Friday night doubleheaders and select Saturday afternoon games; expanded distribution rights ofNBA League Pass;[86] at least one game on Black Friday (the day after Thanksgiving); Quarterfinals, Semifinals and Championship game of theNBA Cup; Play-In Tournament games; one-third of the first and second rounds each year and one of the two Conference Finals series in six of the 11 years on a rotating basis with NBC, beginning with the 2026–27 season.[87]
Additionally,local or regional broadcasters contract with the NBA team in their area for the right to broadcast a number of regular-season games locally. These broadcasters can be traditional over-the-air television stations as well as regional cable sports channels or streaming services.WGN-TV, then a Chicago-based superstation, broadcast a limited number ofChicago Bulls regular season games onWGN America until 2014, fewer than they provided locally. If ESPN chooses to opt out of airing all of the games on their night, NBA TV airs a game in its place. Games in the first round of the playoffs can be aired by regional broadcasters, unless the national broadcaster has exclusive rights. Games in the first round not selected by national broadcasters are usually broadcast by NBA TV.
ESPN Radio: usually one game from the Sunday afternoon package, one game on Thursday night, and postseason coverage including all games in the Conference Finals and the NBA Finals.
In 2013, the WNBA and ESPN signed a six-year extension on the broadcast deal to cover 2017–2022. In the new deal, a total of 30 games would be shown each season on ESPN networks. Each team would receive around $1 million per year.[88]
On April 22, 2019,CBS Sports Network reached a multi-year deal to televise 40 regular-season weekend and primetime WNBA games, beginning in the2019 WNBA season.[89][90]
ESPN/ABC: select weeknight games, All Star Game, playoffs andWNBA Finals. Provisional coverage on ABC through 2025.
TheFirst Four round is televised exclusively by TruTV.
Since 2016, Warner Bros. Discovery networks broadcast the Final Four and national championship games in even-numbered years, and CBS in odd-numbered years. During years in which the Final Four is televised by Warner Bros. Discovery, TBS carries the conventional telecast, with TNT and TruTV simulcasting TBS's feed starting in 2022. From 2014 to 2016, and again in 2018, TNT and truTV had carried special "Team Stream" telecasts with commentary and surrounding coverage focused on each of the participating teams.[94]
1956–present. Augusta National Golf Club does not use long-term contracts, but has consistently chosen CBS as its broadcast partner annually.[104][105]
At least 37 exclusive regular season games per-season between ESPN and ESPN2.[1]
At least 16 exclusive regular season games per-season on ABC.[125]
ABC's broadcasts will consist primarily of a late-season doubleheader/"game of the week" package on most Saturday afternoons and some Saturday nights in the later half of the season.[124]
Rights to half of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, including one conference final per-season. ABC/ESPN has the first choice of which conference final to air.[126]
Broadcasts the Stanley Cup Finals in even-numbered years. Rights to broadcastsupplemental feeds on other ESPN platforms.
Rights to the NHL Awards, shown on ESPN in even years
Rights to simulcast and/or provide supplemental broadcasts for select games ontruTV
Rights to half of the Stanley Cup Playoffs, including one conference final per-season.
Broadcasts the Stanley Cup Finals in odd-numbered years, simulcast on TBS and truTV
Rights to the NHL Awards, shown on TNT in odd years
Local or regional broadcasters contract with the NHL team in their area for the right to broadcast several regular-season games locally.
Radio
Sports USA Radio airs selected regular season and postseason games, including the entire Stanley Cup Finals.[128] NHL teams also contract with local radio broadcasters to air game; games are also simulcast from local radio feeds on theSirius XM satellite radio platform.
The Premier Hockey Federation (PHF; formerly the National Women's Hockey League) has primarily partnered with streaming outlets, which have in the past includedESPN3,[129]Cheddar,[130] andTwitter.[131] In 2019, the league signed withTwitch to stream games and ancillary content, in its first contract to ever include a rights fee.[132]
NBCSN was to televise the league's2021 semi-final and finals in the NWHL's first linear rights deal.
The NWHL had also reached an agreement withNBCSN to carry the 2021 Isobel Cup semi-finals and finals, which would marked the first NWHL games to be broadcast nationally on alinear television channel.[133]
For 2021–22 season, ThePHF, will stream 60 regular season games, special events and its Isobel Cup Playoffs exclusively on ESPN+ in the U.S.
Regular season games air locally, often viaregional sports networks (such asBally Sports) and networks contracted with conferences, these conferences include:
American Hockey League: select games onNHL Network, select regional coverage by local broadcasters, All-Star Game and Skills Competition on regional sports networks
NCAA Men's Lacrosse Championship: First round and Quarterfinal matches onESPNU orESPNews, Semi-finals on ESPN2, Final on ESPN. Effective with the 2011 tournament, internet streaming onTurner Sports (possibly through its administration of the official NCAA sports website).
Fox Sports,NBC Sports,Amazon Prime Video andTNT Sports have contracts for all NASCAR Cup Series events through 2031, whileThe CW have contract for all NASCAR Xfinity Series events also through 2031. On October 15, 2012, NASCAR and theFox Sports Media Group (FSMG) announced a new $2.4 billion eight-year deal, a 30% increase from their previous deal.[143] On July 23, 2013, NASCAR and theNBC Sports Group announced a new $4.4 billion ten-year deal.[144][145][146] Ten days later on August 1, 2013, NASCAR and Fox extended and expanded their agreement, paying an additional $1.4 billion to do so, to complete NASCAR's new TV package through the 2024 season.[147][148]In July 2023, broadcast networkThe CW signed a TV rights deal to broadcast theNASCAR Xfinity Series from 2025 to 2031 for an estimated $115 million annual fee.[149]In November 2023, NASCAR announced a television and streaming deal for theNASCAR Cup Series andNASCAR Truck Series from 2025 to 2031 for a $1.1 billion annual fee.[150][151]Fox Sports andNBC Sports will distribute 14 Cup races each, with five and four races on their broadcast networks respectively. Fox Sports will continue to air early season spring races including theDaytona 500, while NBC will continue to show late-season fall races including the entire NASCAR Cup Series playoffs.Amazon Prime Video will stream five Cup races in the early summer, as well as practice and qualifying for the first half of the season except for the Clash, Daytona 500 and All-Star Race.TNT will show the remaining five Cup races in the late summer, which will also be streamed on theBleacher Report Sports Add-On onMax. Practice and qualifying will air onTruTV and Max for the second half of the season. It was also announced that Fox Sports would continue its arrangement with the Truck series from the previous media deal.
TNT Sports airs the remaining 5 mid-season races onTNT, plus all practices and qualifying sessions for the remainder of the season aired ontruTV and streamed onMax.
ESPN aired Formula One from 1984 to 1997.Speed andFox Sports Net shared broadcasting rights from 1998 to 2000. Speedvision and its successorSpeed Channel continued to broadcast the championship until 2012.Fox aired select races from 2007 to 2012. NBC Sports had English-language TV broadcasting rights from 2013 through 2017. Races were televised by NBC, NBCSN or CNBC and streamed on NBC Sports Live Extra.[154][155]
ESPN became the new broadcaster in 2018. The network unveiled plans to show over 100 hours of F1 programming during their first season returning to the sport. This included plans to show every practice and qualifying session in some capacity. Race broadcasts would be spread across ESPN and ESPN2 with plans to show live coverage of Canada GP, the American and Mexican Grand Prix live on ABC while also showing the Monaco Grand Prix on tape-delay.[156] March 1 of that year they announced the launch of their ownOver-the-top media service called F1 TV Pro what show races live and on-demand.[157]
ESPN Deportes has the current Spanish-language rights.
NBC has held the American broadcasting rights to the Summer Olympic Games since the1988 games and the rights to the Winter Olympic Games since the2002 games. In 2011, NBC agreed to a $4.38 billion contract with theInternational Olympic Committee to broadcast the Olympics through the2020 games, the most expensive television rights deal in Olympic history.[163] NBC then agreed to a $7.75 billion contract extension on May 7, 2014, to air the Olympics through the 2032 games.[3] NBC is one of the major sources of revenue for the IOC.[164]
Fox Sports 2: holds the rights to three matches for each round of the regular season, and for all games part of the Finals Series, including the Grand Final.
Fox Sports 2: holds the rights to all matches for each round of the regular season, and for all games part of the Finals Series, including the Grand Final.
WatchNRL:Archived 2021-08-01 at theWayback Machine shows every match of the season, including the Finals Series and Grand Final.
Fox Soccer Plus airs all televised Super League matches, select matches from theRFL Championship and all televised Challenge Cup ties, including the final. Fox Soccer Plus no longer foresees airing sports other than soccer. The Super League Grand Final airs on Fox Sports 2.
All matches stream live onESPN+ with select matches airing onESPN2. Replays are available free of charge onThe Rugby Network
The Championship Final is broadcast onESPN2 andESPN+
Local television
Additionally, local or regional broadcasters contract with the MLR team in their area for the right to broadcast a number of regular season games locally, primarily onregional sports networks.
English and Spanish-language rights; CONMEBOL qualification matches for the 2026 FIFA World Cup (Home matches from Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Paraguay, Peru, Uruguay and Venezuela)[171]
YouTube
English-language rights;AFC third andfourth round qualification matches for the 2026 FIFA World Cup
Rights to home matches from America, Atlas, Atletico San Luis, Leon, Mazatlan, Monterrey, Necaxa, Pachuca, Puebla, Querétaro, Santos Laguna, Tijuana, Toluca, and UNAM
ESPN[198][199] has the contract through 2035. ABC airs live matches during the middle weekend beginning in 2022. Tennis Channel has rights to daily highlights through 2036[200] also provides coverage. Coverage is as follows:
Qualifying: ESPN+
Days 1–6: ESPN, ESPN+, and ESPN3
Day 7: ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN+, and ESPN3
Days 8 and 9: ESPN, ESPN2, ESPN+ and ESPN3
Days 10–13 including the ladies' and gentlemen's singles finals: ESPN, ESPN+ and ESPN3
Same-day replays are aired on Tennis Channel throughout the tournament through 2023. Live matches of the middle weekend air on ABC beginning in 2022. Same-day replays of the ladies' and gentlemen's singles finals are aired on ABC.
