MLB signed three-year media rights deals with NBCUniversal, ESPN and Netflix that will start in 2026. NBCU will adopt the Sunday Night Baseball package previously owned by ESPN, which will join the Sunday Night Football and Sunday Night Basketball events that NBCU already carries. NBC, Peacock and the revived NBC Sports Network will team up for 25 primetime Sunday Night Baseball games per year. The three will also take on the 8-12 games taking place in the Wild Card round. Additionally, NBCU is getting MLB Sunday Leadoff, where 17 games will be Peacock/NBCSN exclusives and one Peacock/NBC simulcast. Following each of those Sunday Leadoff contests, Peacock will have a Sunday whiparound show (sound familiar to RedZone or Gold Zone?). NBC and Peacock will also have exclusive rights to the primetime game on the first full day of the MLB season.

While ESPN is losing Sunday Night Baseball, it’s gaining a new friend in MLB.TV. That means out-of-market games will be available through the ESPN app and other MLB platforms with an eligible subscription, though ESPN said it’ll make over 150 out-of-market regular-season games available each season as part of a “game of the day” event for ESPN Unlimited subscribers. Plus, ESPN will become the exclusive, local in-market streaming home for six teams: the Padres, Guardians, Mariners, Twins, Diamondbacks and Rockies.

On the national front, ESPN—which didn’t seem to be on the best of terms with MLB when they first announced the opt-out—will get a new, 30-game package that’ll primarily be weeknight events “with a focus on the core summer months.” ESPN Chairman Jimmy Pitaro said the overall agreement “allows us to showcase the great sport of baseball on both a local and national level, while prioritizing our streaming future.”

On the other side, Manfred pointed to taking a multi-faceted approach with distribution, saying, “Bringing MLB.TV to ESPN’s new app while maintaining a presence on linear television reflects a balanced approach to the shifts taking place in the way that fans watch baseball and gives MLB a meaningful presence on an important destination for fans of all sports.”

Last but certainly not least, Netflix’s piece of the pie signals another move to grow its presence in the sports world. The streaming giant will have an Opening Night game on the day prior to the full Opening Day matinée, as well as the annual Home Run Derby and a special event such as the MLB’s Field of Dreams game. With Netflix, Manfred highlighted its U.S. and global presence, calling it “a perfect partner for MLB.” It’s worth noting this isn’t Netflix’s first baseball-related move. It’ll carry all 47 games of the 2026 World Baseball Classic that’ll begin in March.

“Our new USA Sports brand and division name leans into USA Network’s decades-long reputation as a top national sports and entertainment network,” Matt Hong, President, USA Sports, said. “Our diverse portfolio of sports properties and programming across our platforms highlights top-tier global leagues and amplifies major events throughout the sports landscape. USA Sports has something for all sports fans across the country.”

The new-look Pac-12 is going with USA Sports for a five-year pact that’ll begin in 2026-27. USA will air football and basketball (men’s and women’s), as well as the Pac-12 men’s hoops postseason tournament sans the title bout. Specifically, USA will have 22 regular-season football games, 50 regular-season men’s basketball games and 5-10 regular-season women’s hoops games each season. While it’ll carry the Pac-12 men’s basketball tournament, CBS has the rights to the championship. Pac-12 will enter the 2026-27 year with a new roster of schools: Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State, Oregon State, San Diego State, Texas State, Utah State and Washington State. Its broadcast partners also now include USA, CBS, CBS Sports Network and CW Network.

TNT Sports will have the first-ever World Sevens Football event, a 7 vs 7 soccer tournament that’ll take place Dec. 5-7 on TNT, truTV and HBO Max. W7F offers a $5 million prize pool and features prominent women’s soccer players from around the world. The Kansas City Current and San Diego Wave will represent the NWSL at W7F. Additional programming and production details will be announced at a later time.

TGL also made Proofpoint a Founding Partner and its Official Cybersecurity Partner. Proofpoint will sponsor TGL’s Hammer, a scoring modifier used in matches, as well as national advertisements, digital and social media content and in-venue placements.

Optum will be the title sponsor of the Golf Channel Games, a new primetime skills competition led by Rory McIlroy and Scottie Scheffler. The event will air Dec. 17 on Golf Channel and USA. McIlroy and Scheffler will captain four-man teams through various challenges.

Sticking with golf, LIV Golf and Trackman revealed a multi-year deal to expand Trackman’s role as the league’s ball-tracking technology partner. Trackman will now enhance broadcast analytics, hospitality and fan engagement at all 14 LIV Golf events in 2026. Data from driving range sessions will be featured in pre-show telecasts, showing insights such as speed, ball flight and club metrics.

YES Network is partnering with CAMB.AI to use artificial intelligence solutions that enhance the fan-viewing experience. CAMB.AI specializes in multilingual translation across more than 150 languages. It’s the first U.S. sports TV network partnership for CAMB.AI, though it already has contracts with MLS and NASCAR, as well as Comcast NBCUniversal, Dentsu, IMAX and Ligue 1.

Contest platform Splash Sports and golf content creator RickRunGood introduced the $1.25 million Golf One & Done World Championship. That’s the largest publicly available Golf One & Done contest ever. Fans will be able to make picks, track standings and vie for a share of the $1.25 million prize.

The six international games on NFL Network this year averaged 6.2 million viewers across TV and digital. That’s the most-watched slate of international games on NFL Network on record, showcasing a 32% spike compared to last year’s telecasts. The latest contest, Dolphins-Commanders in Madrid, came in at 5.9 million viewers—good for a top-five NFL Network international game ever.

Fanatics Sportsbook is teaming up with Megan Thee Stallion for a new basketball-season campaign built around the crossover between hoops, culture and music. The “Explained by Megan Thee Stallion” series spotlights the FanCash rewards program and its Fair Play injury protection. In the spot, the musician is conducting a 25-piece orchestra while an orchestral version of her song “Savage” underscores the pitch.

ESPN is releasing a “30 for 30” documentary about the life and legacy of Stuart Scott. Scott, who passed away in 2015 following a battle with cancer, was a mainstay on “SportsCenter” and became one of the network’s leading voices with his catchphrases “Boo-Yah!” and “Cooler than the other side of the pillow.” The film is appropriately named “Boo-Yah” and will premiere Dec. 10 at 9pm on ESPN. ESPN will also launch a merchandise collection that’ll honor Scott and Jim Valvano, with 100% of the royalties going to the V Foundation.

2018: San Diego Chargers QB Philip Rivers completed 25 consecutive passes to start a game against the Cardinals, surpassing Mark Brunell and David Carr’s previous record of 22. The Chargers went on to win 45-10. Rivers also set the record for best single-game completion percentage at 96.6%, but that was eclipsed when Lions QB Jared Goff finished a game at 100% in 2024.

2019: Lamar Jackson became the first NFL QB to toss 3,000 yards and rush for 1,500 in his first two seasons. Jackson would go on to win his first of two (2023) MVP titles.

2020: Caitlin Clark made her collegiate debut for Iowa, notching 27 points, eight rebounds and four assists in a victory over Northern Iowa. Clark finished her storied college run as the all-time leading scorer in Division I, along with two Naismith College Player of the Year honors, three unanimous selections as a First-team All-American, three Big Ten Player of the Year awards and much more. To say she left her mark on Iowa—and basketball—would be an understatement.