Major League Baseball regional media rights will reach $1.6 billion in 2026, according to Ampere Analysis projections reported by palco23.mundodeportivo.com.
That revenue figure amounts to 43 percent of the league’s total national broadcast income, which sits at $3.7 billion. The financial projection comes despite mounting pressure on regional sports networks.
Traditional cable-based networks have absorbed heavy blows from cord-cutting. Over the last four years, 13 of the 30 MLB teams lost their regional television partners, with 12 of those departures stemming from the bankruptcies of Diamond Sports and Main Street Sports Group.
Ampere Analysis estimates that U.S. pay-TV households will drop from 96 million in 2016 to 65 million by the end of 2026. During that same timeframe, streaming households are projected to climb from 57 million to 112 million.
MLB.tv Steps in as Interim Partner
The over-the-top streaming platform MLB.tv has cushioned the blow for dislocated franchises. For the 2026 season, the service holds regional broadcast rights for 14 of the league’s 30 teams.
Those 14 clubs generate roughly 30 percent of all ad-free regional television revenue.
Ampere Analysis reports that the Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Yankees alone account for 23 percent of the league’s entire regional rights pool.
Centralizing Control for 2028
Faced with fractured regional broadcast markets, Major League Baseball plans to centralize local rights during its next media rights cycle in 2028.
“Un paquete consolidado de derechos locales de la MLB ofrecería un volumen sustancial de partidos a las cadenas interesadas en una de las cuatro grandes ligas deportivas estadounidenses,” states the Ampere Analysis report.
Long-term forecasts from Ampere project pay-TV households in the United States to decline further to 58 million by 2031. Streaming households are expected to reach 120 million over that same period.
Broader Industry Disruption
Similar television disruptions have hit the National Basketball Association and the National Hockey League. Main Street Sports Group previously held regional rights for 13 NBA teams that were forced to find new broadcast homes.
DAZN acquired regional streaming rights for multiple NBA teams ahead of the 2026 schedule. Meanwhile, Major League Baseball postponed implementing a salary cap until the 2028 season while keeping other labor terms intact for 2027.
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