A significant shift in the broadcasting of professional baseball is on the horizon, as Major League Baseball (MLB) and ESPN have jointly decided to dissolve their national television contract after the 2025 season completes. A communiqué delivered by MLB’s top brass, Commissioner Rob Manfred, to the league’s owners brings this development to light. In his memo, Manfred highlighted inadequate visibility of MLB content on ESPN’s platforms over recent years, barring live games, to be a significant area of contention.
ESPN’s Sunday Night Baseball and wild-card playoff games, along with other joint ventures, will persist through the 2025 season. An impending March 1 deadline existed for either party to rescind the final three years of a contractual agreement set to run till 2028. It was learned from insiders that ESPN communicated its decision to withdraw from this arrangement on Thursday morning.
MLB, in response to ESPN’s exit, echoed a similar sentiment and chose to retract as well. As per the terms of the original contract, ESPN was obligated to remit roughly $550 million annually over the next three years to MLB, an amount deemed to significantly surpass current market values, state those poached on ESPN’s rationale.
Manfred’s dispatch to the owners underlines his belief that accepting a less lucrative deal to keep MLB on a dwindling platform is not an advantageous proposition. His vision encapsulates positioning MLB’s regular season, Home Run Derby, and Wild Card playoff round to shine extensively on a novel broadcast or streaming platform and to maximise its rights when entering the next contractual cycle.
The memo went on to reveal that MLB is already in active discussion with multiple entities showing interest in these rights for several months. He expressed optimism about presenting at least a couple of potential options for consideration in the forthcoming weeks. It was clear from Manfred’s communication that the possibility of teaming up with ESPN on a fresh agreement is still open.
In return, ESPN expressed gratitude for their enduring association with MLB and lauded the delivery of their coverage, feeling confident about its service to fans. They characterized the decision to part ways as an exercise of astute discipline and fiscal responsibility that has built ESPN’s prominence in live events. The sports giant assured that it stays interested in discovering new methods to serve MLB enthusiasts across its platforms beyond the 2025 mark.
The partnership between ESPN and MLB, rooted since 1990, carries a history of mutual dependency and it is significant to highlight that both parties seemingly remain open to collaboration. The sports network has suggested both national and regional program alternatives to continue its partnership with MLB. For MLB, the possible challenge lies in sourcing similar monetary commitment from elsewhere.
The contract between MLB and ESPN, which was confirmed in 2021 for a span of seven years, witnessed ESPN wanting a revision citing changing market conditions, necessitating baseball to adapt accordingly. The annual price tag of $85 million for baseball rights paid by Apple, and Roku’s $10 million are cited as industry benchmarks.
Manfred outlined ESPN’s persistent approach over the past months, trying to get a decrease in the fees for MLB content for the remainder of the term. He objected to ESPN referring to the lower rights fees agreed by Apple and Roku in their deals with MLB as benchmarks, and counters this by noting that the context of the ESPN deal is fundamentally different.
Manfred cited the unique exclusivity ESPN enjoyed with its contract compared to the deals with Apple and Roku. With the only truly exclusive regular season Sunday Nights, an entire round of playoffs, and Home Run Derby, one of the summer’s most thrilling events, ESPN’s deal trumped others. Apple and Roku, on the other hand, have games that compete against a full array of other games showcased in local markets.
Another aspect pointed out by Manfred opposes the idea of lowering fees as the performance metrics of their product are strong. For instance, Sunday Night Baseball ratings rose by 6% in 2024 compared to 2023, a remarkable achievement considering 2024 was an Olympics year. The Wild Card Series in 2024 had the highest viewership ever with an average of over 2.8M viewers per game, a 25 percent increase from 2023. The Home Run Derby continues to be the highest-rated skills competition across all professional leagues.
Manfred further expressed dissatisfaction with the reduced coverage of MLB received on ESPN’s platforms over the years. He did not believe Pay TV, ESPN’s major distribution platform, to be the future of video distribution or the best platform for showcasing their content. While ESPN is still available to 53.6M homes as of December 2024, there is a significant decrease from its height of over 100M homes in 2011 and 69M homes in 2021.
Closing out, the memo states an agreement has been mutually reached for termination of the contract with ESPN. Though ESPN has expressed an interest in retaining MLB content, Manfred finds the lesser deal unappealing due to the network’s decreasing impact. Reaffirming MLB’s plan to optimize rights for the next cycle, the league remains committed to shifting its marquee regular season games, Home Run Derby and Wild Card playoff round to a new platform. Talks have been ongoing with several interested parties, and some choices are expected to materialize soon. Despite the conclusive end of the agreement with ESPN, MLB games will remain on ESPN for the duration of the 2025 season, including the postseason. Any fresh contract will only commence from 2026.