MLB: ESPN, NBCUniversal, and Netflix sign historic deals for 2026-2028

Santo Domingo, D.R. The Major League Baseball (MLB) has announced the signing of three major media rights agreements with ESPN, NBCUniversal, and Netflix. These partnerships promise to transform the way fans around the world enjoy baseball between the 2026 and 2028 seasons.

New Strategic Alliances

These renewed and expanded agreements will allow the league to strengthen its presence on digital platforms, expand television broadcast options, and reach global audiences that previously did not have access to live games through these services.

ESPN: Expanding the Reach

ESPN extends its relationship with MLB to 39 years and will take control of MLB.TV. The sports network has acquired the rights to sell and distribute MLB.TV, the out-of-market games service, integrating it into its app and digital platforms. Starting in 2026, fans will be able to directly access their favorite teams’ matches through ESPN. The agreement includes:

• 30 exclusive games per season, both on television and streaming.
• Rights to broadcast the Memorial Day game and the first game after the All-Star Break.
• More than 150 out-of-market games each year through its application.
• The continuation of the celebrated Little League Classic.

ESPN President Jimmy Pitaro highlighted that the agreement represents an opportunity to integrate national and local content into a more robust streaming ecosystem.

Jimmy Pitaro, President of ESPN

NBCUniversal: The Return to Baseball

NBCUniversal returns to baseball after 26 years, becoming a key broadcast home for MLB. The agreement includes:

• Sunday Night Baseball.
• Sunday Leadoff.
• The four Wild Card Series of the postseason.

The games will be available on NBC, NBCSN (new sports channel), and Peacock. The network will also broadcast highlight events such as:

• The 2026 Opening Day: Diamondbacks vs. Dodgers.
• The MLB Draft, whose first hour will be televised by NBC.
• The Futures Game during All-Star Week.

Rick Cordella, President of NBC Sports, expressed his enthusiasm for the return, highlighting the history between the network and MLB dating back to 1947.

Netflix: Live Sports Venture

For the first time in its history, Netflix will stream MLB games and events globally. The agreement includes:

• An exclusive Opening Night game in 2026, 2027, and 2028.
• The T-Mobile Home Run Derby.
• The MLB at Field of Dreams 2026 event.
• Live and on-demand streaming of the 2026 World Baseball Classic in Japan.

Netflix will debut in 2026 with an exciting matchup between the Yankees and the Giants, led by Aaron Judge.

A Boost for Baseball

Commissioner Rob Manfred highlighted that these alliances come after a World Series with over 51 million global viewers, the most watched in over three decades.

MLB has experienced consistent growth in:

• National and international audience
• Stadium attendance
• Social media interaction
• Tracking among young audiences (17 years old or younger and adults aged 18-34)

These agreements add to the existing partnerships with FOX/FS1 (home of the World Series and postseason), TBS (regular season games and divisional series), Apple TV (“Friday Night Baseball”), and MLB Network (live broadcasts and studio programming).