Julia Stoll
Research expert covering TV and video media
Sports streaming in the United States - statistics & facts
Live sports programming attracts millions of U.S. viewers every year, occupying the first spots of the most watched shows in the United States. Sporting events are often linked to traditional cable networks as they own the rights to the most popular sports leagues, such as the National Football League (NFL) or the National Basketball Association (NBA). However, streaming services increasingly saw the potential in recent years and grew their spending on sports rights worldwide, with Amazon Prime Video, Apple TV+, and Netflix being the latest options entering the sports broadcasting industry.
With the enthusiasm for sports remaining high among American consumers, the integration of this content into streaming has opened up new avenues for viewer engagement. Despite traditional TV still being the go-to platform for major events, the overall trend suggests that sports fans are adapting to the streaming era, driven by the desire to access exclusive games and the promise of expanded offerings on these services.
On-demand services increase their sports coverage
Amazon Prime Video, ESPN+, Peacock, and YouTube TV are currently the most popular streaming apps in the U.S. to watch sports. While Peacock and ESPN+ have been essential to consumers watching live games and events for several years, more and more large media companies recently jumped on the bandwagon and now provide live sports via their streaming services. Apple, for example, spent over 2.5 billion U.S. dollars on a 10-year deal on exclusive rights to broadcast Major League Soccer (MLS) games on its SVOD platform. Since Amazon’s sports coverage, on the other hand, includes the NFL games on Thursdays branded as “Thursday Night Football” (TNF) on Prime Video. This move has been crowned with success – the streaming viewership of TNF grew by over two million between the 2022 and 2023 seasons, with the event in particular gaining traction among younger demographics. As the NFL is the most watched sports on TV in the U.S., it is not surprising that also Netflix entered the sports broadcasting business, and provides the professional American football league on Christmas.Most streamed sports
The Super Bowl – the yearly championship game of the NFL – remains the undisputed winner among sporting events in terms of TV audience in the United States. However, while the number of streaming viewers recently grew, a new survey found that more respondents plan to watch the 2025 game via linear TV than in the previous year. Streaming TV apps and mobile viewing will likely reach less consumers. In contrast, according to a survey conducted before the 2024 Summer Olympics, over half of American respondents revealed to watch the sporting event via live streaming, nearly double the amount reached in 2021. In general, cable, satellite, and antenna still dominate sports consumption, but streaming providers are seeing an uptick in time spent watching sporting events.With the enthusiasm for sports remaining high among American consumers, the integration of this content into streaming has opened up new avenues for viewer engagement. Despite traditional TV still being the go-to platform for major events, the overall trend suggests that sports fans are adapting to the streaming era, driven by the desire to access exclusive games and the promise of expanded offerings on these services.
Julia Stoll
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Nov 22, 2024
Julia Stoll
Research expert covering TV and video media
