
NBA rights deal sparks first-year ratings surge
The first year of the NBA's new media rights deal delivered a sizable uplift in regular-season viewership: the 2025-26 season averaged 1.78 million viewers across ESPN/ABC, NBCUniversal and Prime Video (up 16% on ESPN/ABC and TNT; up 35% including NBA TV). NBCUniversal led with 2.8 million viewers per window (up 109%), while Prime Video drew about 1.0 million per comparable window with younger demographics. ABC/ESPN also posted gains. Overall, the season was the most-watched on the league's primary partners in seven years and the most-watched across all networks in 13 years.













