When famed wrestler Sting described his character change from a clean-cut babyface to a darker, enigmatic character in 1996, he provided the proper axiom for predicting the longer term. The Stinger remarked, “The only thing that is certain about Sting is that nothing is certain.”
This also applies to sports media. There are some trends which are obvious (increased investment in women's sports media; legacy media consolidation and layoffs; Netflix becoming a bigger sports provider; more media focused on sports betting revenue), but who knows? Nevertheless, we provide you with some guesses for 2025.
1. Tom Brady will retire from broadcasting before the beginning of the 2025 NFL season
I've said before that I might bet big money on Brady not ending his 10-year, $375 million contract with Fox, given all of his various business interests outside of broadcasting, including property. That stays true. The safer prediction could be for Brady to desert his Fox contract after three or 4 years. But I'll be daring and say that Brady delves deeper into the Las Vegas Raiders within the offseason and decides to go all-in with NFL ownership and his production company by the beginning of the following NFL season.
2. WNBA viewership will increase in 2025
This shouldn’t be a moment for ladies’s sports. There has been a movement for a while. Game 5 of the WNBA Finals – a 67-62 extra time thriller won by the New York Liberty – averaged 2.15 million viewers, the most-watched WNBA Finals game in 25 years. The final round was watched by a median of 1.6 million viewers, 115 percent greater than last season. It was the culmination of a unbelievable yr in attendance for the league – and we're keen to say that the catalyst for the rise in attendance was interest in Caitlin Clark. In total, there have been 32 WNBA television windows amongst its media partners that reached the 1 million viewer mark throughout the 2024 season, including the WNBA Draft. This broke the previous record of 15.
Starting with the 2026 season, you'll see latest partners NBC and Amazon Prime Video on a long-term TV rights deal, and it is best to expect them to speculate significant marketing dollars. Under the brand new agreements, Disney, NBC and Amazon will distribute greater than 125 regular-season and playoff games nationwide each season, including not less than 25 regular-season games on Disney platforms, 50 regular-season games on NBCUniversal platforms and 30 games the regular season. Season games on Amazon Prime Video. Thanks to the brand new 3-on-3 women's basketball league, Unrivaled, launching in January 2025, the league can be getting a lift from a brand new franchise (Golden State Valkyries) and more off-season exposure for star players.
Clark's star will proceed to rise, and in case you think malicious actors bashing her for culture war points can have an impact on viewership, I refer you to those that predicted NFL viewership will probably be gone without end. For the WNBA, the arrow is pointing up.
3. ESPN Flagship will probably be an fast hit
ESPN's direct-to-consumer streaming service, codenamed “Flagship,” will allow consumers to access the complete range of ESPN networks with out a traditional pay-TV subscription. This includes all of ESPN+'s programming offerings and what’s currently airing on linear ESPN. There may even be integration with ESPN Fantasy and ESPN Bet. The starting price is reportedly between $25 and $30 per 30 days, and I feel this price will initially attract consumers. I feel early subscriber numbers will exceed expectations, especially given recent strong growth in YouTube TV.
Research firm MoffettNathanson, which provides media, communications and technology trends to institutional investors, released a note this month by which it forecast that “after an initial investment of $75 million in fiscal year (fiscal year) 2025, around the Getting the service up and running (probably). (a launch at the end of fiscal year 2025, in time for the start of the NFL season), we expect an initial one million paid subscribers in fiscal year 2026, resulting in subscription revenue of just over $200 million and advertising revenue of $20 million.” I expect this number to be higher by fiscal yr 2026.
4. Kevin Harlan will watch NBA games for Amazon Prime Video
Ian Eagle has made a deal as one among Amazon's lead broadcasters, and I expect Harlan to affix him. A 1-2 game-winning combination with Eagle and Harlan will immediately give the streamer massive credibility within the live game space.
5. ESPN will terminate its current MLB contract after the 2025 season
This might be the closest thing to a layup prediction. MoffettNathanson said Disney/ESPN could save as much as $600 million in expenses by leaving, although most expect the contract to be restructured. Will ESPN get local games for Flagship?
6. UFC will probably be split between ESPN and Netflix
No inside information from me – only a guess that UFC finally ends up imitating WWE and landing its product on each Disney and Netflix. And so Netflix begins to push hard for sports rights.
The UFC's Dana White will probably be in search of – and getting – huge media deals in 2025, in response to Richard Deitsch's prediction. (Steve Marcus/Getty Images)
7. ESPN finally commits to hosting a each day studio show dedicated to women's basketball throughout the WNBA season
They have an impressive crowd-pleaser in Clark, a litany of interesting all-stars from A'ja Wilson to Kelsey Plum, and an appetite for storylines on and off the sphere. If ESPN wants the credit for constructing women's basketball in America, because it all the time does, it's in no way up for discussion given its quite a few distribution channels. If this doesn't exist next yr, the network must be dismantled.
8. The Pac-12 will acquire not less than one major media company for its media rights
In November, the Pac-12 announced that Octagon would serve because the official agency to guide the conference through the media rights landscape. That signals to me that somebody with some weight will bite, and I take a flyer that it should be WBD Sports, whose 2024 yr was defined by the lack of the rights to the NBA on TNT. Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State, Gonzaga, San Diego State and Utah State join Oregon State and Washington State for the 2026-27 season. The league needs one other football school to fulfill the edge and remain recognized as a conference inside the FBS division.
9. ESPN hires an lively player or coach for the NBA Finals
It's been clear for a while that ESPN management doesn't desire a two-person booth for NBA Finals coverage. It's also clear that the network wants an enormous name (e.g. Milwaukee Bucks coach Doc Rivers) within the highlight for the sale.
Who could that be? My colleague Andrew Marchand posited on this June article that ESPN should already be courting the likes of LeBron James or Steph Curry in the event that they were ever to contemplate broadcasting. This is an interesting long-term game. What I feel may be very likely in 2025 is that somebody like Chris Paul will probably be a guest analyst for the Finals. Longtime NBA coach Monty Williams would even be an interesting individual case.
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