Netflix Inc (NASDAQ:NFLX) no longer breaks out its quarterly subscriber count. Instead, the streaming giant highlights advertising growth and revenue diversification opportunities.
Betting on live sports has been among the company's newest strategies for both items. And a new deal with Major League Baseball could help it hit a home run for the company and shareholders.
Netflix Bets On Baseball
Netflix has added the MLB to its growing library of live sports offerings, and will air three events in 2026 and additional events through 2028. Here is the current lineup:
- Opening night game: New York Yankees at San Francisco Giants, March 25, 2026, first MLB game of the season
- T-Mobile Home Run Derby: July 13, 2026 in Philadelphia, is the most-watched skills competition across the major North American sports
- Field of Dreams Game: Minnesota Twins at Philadelphia Phillies playing at the iconic Field of Dreams movie set in Iowa, August 13, 2026
"We are incredibly thankful for our partnership with Major League Baseball. We started with critically acclaimed documentaries, deepening the existing global passion for baseball, Netflix Chief Content Officer Bela Bajaria said.
MLB Commissioner Robert Manfred said Netflix "is a perfect partner" for the league with its strong global reach, including a strong presence in the United States.
"MLB has a diverse group of exciting international players competing in our biggest events which will create an appealing offering to Netflix subscribers around the world," Manfred said.
MLB also signed deals with The Walt Disney Company (NYSE:DIS) and Comcast Corporation (NASDAQ:CMCSA) as part of the new content deal. Comcast's NBC network will get MLB games for the first time in 26 years.
Existing MLB partners Fox Corporation and Apple will also air games in 2026.
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Live Sports Part of Netflix's Growth Plans
Netflix previously aired docuseries about sports and did some one-off live events across golf and tennis, before looking to land marquee live sports events and rights.
Unlike traditional media companies looking to land full-season rights, Netflix has been more selective with what rights it gets, hoping to capitalize on top events that attract the most viewers.
The three MLB events Netflix has typically attract strong viewership. These events all have built-in awareness from fans and could also attract viewers who don't typically care about baseball.
The company has aired several live boxing events and also airs World Wrestling Entertainment content.
Netflix aired two NFL games last Christmas and has two lined up for this year as part of a three-year deal.
In 2024, Netflix streamed two games on Christmas. One of the games averaged 24.3 million viewers (Baltimore Ravens, Houston Texans). The other (Kansas City Chiefs, Pittsburgh Steelers) had 24.1 million viewers.
Those games set new NFL streaming records for the regular season. They surpassed even the 23 million viewers of Peacock’s exclusive streaming game during the 2023 NFL playoffs.
This year, Netflix will air games between the Dallas Cowboys and Washington Commanders at 1 p.m. ET and between the Detroit Lions and Minnesota Vikings at 4:30 p.m. ET on Christmas Day. To cap off that day, Netflix will release the second part (3 episodes) of season 5 of "Stranger Things." This means that Netflix could control televisions on Christmas Day.
NFL viewership is up 6% year-over-year through Week 11 with an average of 17.7 million viewers, the highest average through Week 11 since 2015. Netflix could look to break its own records in 2025 on Christmas.
Other future rights include Netflix airing the World Baseball Classic in Japan and the Women's World Cup in the United States and Canada in 2027 and 2031.
Live sports help the company gain subscribers and keep subscribers. They also mean big dollars for advertising revenue with live sports one of the most consistent ad markets, as consumers mostly tune in live for sports, unlike traditional programming they can watch at their leisure.
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