The U.S. Department of Justice plans to expand its inquiry into NFL media rights to other leagues, including MLB; LIV Golf has funding for the rest of the season; the sports strategy at Netflix remains “pretty much unchanged” as the company reports earnings. Plus news on ESPN, Fox Sports, the Big Ten Conference and TNT Sports.
DOJ plans to reportedly examine streaming rights of MLB, other leagues covered under SBA
The reported U.S. Department of Justice inquiry into whether the NFL’s deals with streaming companies comply with the league’s antitrust exemption will extend into other leagues covered by the Sports Broadcasting Act of 1961, according to a report by Kelcee Griffis and Josh Sisco of Bloomberg. Major League Baseball, whose media rights deals include exclusive games on streamers Apple TV and Netflix, was specifically named in the report.
The NFL is the only league that requires games on cable or streaming to be simulcast on local over-the-air affiliates in the home markets. With the exception of games on Peacock that are simulcast on cable network NBCSN, streaming-exclusive MLB, NBA and NHL games are not available on any other platform.
In addition to MLB and the NFL, the NBA and NHL are able to pool and sell team media rights collectively under an antitrust exemption in the Sports Broadcasting Act of 1961. The legislation — which was passed into law long before cable, much less streaming — specifically applies to “sponsored telecasting of the games,” and there has been some question as to whether it applies beyond broadcast television.
Fox Corporation and Sinclair public comments to the FCC arguing against streaming platforms placing game broadcasts on what Fox termed “paywalled streamers.” The debate is flaring up as the NBA prepares to carry playoff games exclusively on Amazon’s Prime Video for the first time.
LIV Golf has funding to complete 2026 season
LIV Golf CEO Scott O’Neil said Thursday in a since-deleted interview with TNT Sports’ UK division that the league has funding to complete its 2026 season. Those comments followed a report by Samuel Agini, Sujeet Indap and Arash Massoudi of The Financial Times on Wednesday that Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund was “on the verge of cutting its support for” the property. O’Neil sent a memo to staffers Wednesday ensuring that the season would proceed “as planned, uninterrupted and at full throttle,” according to a report by Mark Schlabach of ESPN.
O’Neil previously told The Financial Times that LIV Golf was five to 10 years away from reaching profitability, projecting that four of the league’s 14 events and 10 out of its 13 teams would be profitable this season. “The reality is you’re funded through the season and then you work like crazy as a business to create a business and a business plan to keep us going,” O’Neil said, “but that’s not different from any other private equity-funded business in the history of mankind.”
Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund announced a new investment plan earlier this week that focuses on domestic spending. While attending the Masters Tournament last week, O’Neil is said to have claimed that the league is funded through 2032, according to a report by Rex Hoggard of Golf Channel. “This is private equity,” O’Neil said on the TNT Sports broadcast. “There is going to be some intensity, there’s going to be funding. This is the world that I’ve lived in a decade and then some, and it’s what I signed up for and it’s what I love.”
LIV Golf has eight more tournaments on its schedule for this season, but a majority of those events will take place in the United States. The entity recently signed a multiyear media rights deal with Fox Sports that started last February after previously airing on Nexstar-owned CW. While golfers Brooks Koepka and Patrick Reed utilized a returning member program to rejoin the PGA Tour, LIV Golf has retained several other stars in Bryson DeChambeau, Jon Rahm and Cameron Smith.
Netflix sports strategy remains “pretty much unchanged” as company reports earnings
Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos said Thursday that the company’s sports strategy remains “pretty much unchanged.” The streamer has largely focused on “eventizing” matchups and other league events, most recently presenting the first standalone MLB Opening Night matchup since 2015 — a telecast Sarandos included among several “sports successes” along with the World Baseball Classic in Japan and NFL Christmas Day doubleheader.
Netflix is headed into the final year of its contract to carry Christmas Day NFL games, but Sarandos confirmed the company is in discussions with the league and believes there is an “opportunity to expand the relationship.”
Earlier in the quarter, Netflix declined to amend its $82.7 billion offer for Warner Bros. Discovery when the company deemed Paramount had put forth a superior merger proposal. The company received a $2.8 billion termination fee funded by Paramount on behalf of WBD, which Sarandos told Lucas Shaw of Bloomberg would be used to “keep investing in the business.”
Netflix registered Q1 revenue of $12.3 billion, indicative of a 16% increase year-over-year, while net income finished up 83% YoY at $5.28 billion, part of which was attributable to the WBD termination fee. That helped the company’s earnings per share rise by 86% year-over-year to $1.23, along with operating income surpassing projections. Sarandos reiterated Thursday that the WBD deal “was a nice to have, not a need to have,” and added that the company remained confident in its “core business.” Netflix also improved its operating margin from to 32.3% (+0.6% YoY) on operating income of $3.96 billion (+18% YoY).
Plus: ESPN, Fox Sports, Big Ten Conference, TNT Sports
- ESPN carried out widely expected layoffs on Tuesday, with the highest-profile exit reported thus far being SVP of programming/content strategy Ilan Ben-Hanan, according to a report by John Ourand of Puck. Ben-Hanan confirmed on social media that he is leaving the network later in the year and posted a message expressing his gratitude and thanking his colleagues. Throughout his 24 years with the company, Ben-Hanan has been responsible for overseeing ESPN sports broadcasts on ABC and other portions of the network’s operations.
- Fox Sports announced Thursday that former Netherlands national team midfielder Clarence Seedorf would return to its coverage of the FIFA World Cup for the first time in eight years. Seedorf will serve as a studio analyst for the tournament alongside host Rebecca Lowe and several prominent former soccer players, including Thierry Henry, Javier “Chicarito” Hernández and Zlatan Ibrahimović. Fox Sports holds the U.S. broadcast rights for the tournament and will present 70 out of the 104 matches on broadcast television.
- The Big Ten Conference has announced that it will hold a 15-team women’s volleyball tournament starting this November, joining the SEC as the second major conference to determine a champion through a season-ending tournament. The tournament will run from Friday, Nov. 20 to the title game on Thanksgiving Eve, Wednesday, Nov. 25. With the addition of the tournament, teams will play three fewer regular-season games.
- TNT Sports has obtained the U.S. media rights to the FIA World Endurance Championship, adding to a sports rights portfolio that has continued to expand over the last year. Throughout the season, truTV will air three of the racing events in their entirety — including 24 Hours of Le Mans, the Rolex 6 Hours of São Paulo and Lone Star Le Mans. These races, along with five others, will be available to view on HBO Max as well.
