# MLB signs three-year broadcast deals with NBC and Netflix, ending ESPN's Sunday night monopoly in US baseball > NBC returns to Major League Baseball for the first time in 26 years and Netflix airs its first live regular-season games under a 2026-28 deal worth hundreds of millions of dollars **Meta:** type: event · date: 2025-11-19 · heads: 누구의 돈인가, 장기전 · 5 takes · 3 lenses · 1 regions ## Summary Major League Baseball announced new three-year broadcast deals with NBC/Peacock, Netflix and ESPN on 19 November 2025, taking effect from the 2026 season through 2028. NBC acquires Sunday Night Baseball, a package it last held 26 years ago before ESPN secured it in 2000, along with the Wild Card Series and a Sunday Leadoff afternoon package across NBC broadcast and the Peacock streaming service. Netflix gains its first live regular-season [Mlb](/ko/entity/mlb) games, starting with Opening Night, the Home Run Derby and the Field of Dreams Game, as well as the 2026 World Baseball Classic in Japan. ESPN retains a 30-game midweek package and acquires the rights to sell and distribute MLB.TV, paying US$550 million for its reduced bundle. The short three-year term reflects MLB's strategy of staying flexible ahead of a much larger rights auction expected in 2029. ## The split US media-industry coverage framed the deals as a three-stage disruption: NBC's return to baseball as a competitive bid against ESPN marked the end of an effective broadcast monopoly; Netflix's entry into live regular-season sports signals the first time the platform has acquired rights to non-event live games in the United States; and ESPN's smaller package and payment reduction reflects its diminished leverage as cord-cutting erodes its cable subscriber base. Sports media analysts in the US treated the three-year term as a deliberate staging decision, with Manfred quoted positioning the 2029 auction as the real prize. International media tracked whether the MLB.TV streaming distribution deal with ESPN would expand global reach. ## By the numbers - 2026-28, the three-year term of the new deals - 1990-2025, ESPN's Sunday Night Baseball run (35 years, ended under this deal) - US$550 million, ESPN's payment for its new reduced bundle including MLB.TV distribution - 26 years, NBC's absence from live MLB coverage before this deal - 1st live regular-season MLB game broadcast rights for Netflix - 30-game midweek package acquired by ESPN ## Why it matters The [Media Rights](/ko/entity/media-rights) restructuring signals that the US sports broadcasting landscape is genuinely competitive again after decades of ESPN dominance. For MLB specifically, the three-platform strategy maximises near-term revenue while preserving optionality for 2029. Netflix's entry into live game rights, even for a modest initial package, is treated as a crossing-the-Rubicon moment that will accelerate rights inflation across US sports leagues. The NBC return also reaffirms that over-the-air broadcast plus streaming bundles can outbid cable-only incumbents when backed by large streaming platforms. ## What to watch - Netflix subscriber and viewership metrics from its first MLB regular-season telecasts in 2026 - Whether NBC's Sunday Night Baseball audiences rival or exceed ESPN's comparable ratings - MLB's 2029 rights auction and whether the short-term deal proves a ceiling or a floor - How other US sports leagues (NBA, NFL) respond to Netflix entering live sports ## Regional takes (batched by bias / lens) ### unlabelled - **MLB.com** (United States, en) — Official MLB announcement confirming three-year broadcast deals with NBC/Peacock, Netflix and ESPN, effective from the 2026 season through 2028. NBC acquires Sunday Night Baseball (replacing ESPN), the Wild Card Series and Sunday Leadoff package. Netflix gains live regular-season and event rights. ESPN buys a 30-game midweek package and MLB.TV distribution for US$550 million. Source: https://www.mlb.com/news/mlb-announces-media-rights-deals-with-espn-nbc-netflix - **Boardroom** (United States, en) — Source: https://boardroom.tv/mlb-media-rights-tv-espn-nbc-netflix-rob-manfred/ - **Yahoo Sports** (United States, en) — Source: https://sports.yahoo.com/article/mlb-announces-updated-media-rights-154340352.html ### media industry analysis - **CNBC** (United States, en) — CNBC frames the deal as a structural disruption of US sports broadcasting: Sunday Night Baseball migrating from ESPN (which held the rights since 1990) to NBC signals that legacy over-the-air networks are competitive again via streaming arms. Netflix's entry into live game rights is treated as a market validation moment for the streaming model. > "MLB announces new media rights deals for NBC, ESPN and Netflix." Source: https://www.cnbc.com/2025/11/19/mlb-media-rights-deals-nbc-espn-netflix.html ### broadcast industry specialist - **Sports Video Group** (United States, en) — Technical and commercial breakdown of the three-year package: NBC/Peacock takes Sunday prime time and Wild Card, Netflix takes Home Run Derby, Opening Night and Field of Dreams game plus the 2026 World Baseball Classic in Japan, ESPN takes a midweek package and streaming-distribution rights. > "MLB media-rights shakeup overview: ESPN, NBCU, Netflix ink three-year deals." Source: https://www.sportsvideo.org/2025/11/19/mlb-media-rights-shakeup-overview-espn-nbcu-and-netflix-inks-three-year-deals/ ## Across the graph - Entities: Media Rights, Mlb --- Canonical: https://rbtfl.xyz/ko/n/mlb-media-rights-nbc-netflix-2026