尼尔森 -优化多平台体育投资 26 2026 Upfront Optimizing multi-platform sports investments

unlockingvaluethrough

thelinear+streamingmulti-platformecosystem

Yourguideto

Precisioninplay:

sportsinvestments

Optimizingmulti-platform

Unlockingincrementalreachinamultiscreenworld

2026Upfront

PlanningSeries

Introduction

Livesportscontinuetoserveastheultimateculturalanchorfortoday'sfragmentedviewingaudiences,representing

alargeportionofalladsupportedTVconsumption.Even

withthat,thewayfansaccessthese"must-see"eventshasfundamentallychangedasmajorsportspropertiesexpandtheirdistributionintothestreamingspace.

Thisguideexaminesthenewmulti-platformrealityoflivesports,highlightinghowlinearbroadcastsand

streamingplatformsofferhighlycomplementaryaudiences.

Italsoexploresnew,alternativeentrypointsforengaging

dedicatedfansthroughtherapidgrowthofsports-adjacent

programming,likehighlights,commentary,anddocumentariesonFASTchannels.

Copyright©2026TheNielsenCompany(US),LLC.2

Precisioninplay:Optimizingmulti-platformsportsinvestments|Unlockingincrementalreachinamultiscreenworld

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Apowerhouseeraforlivesports

Whilelivesportshavebeenacornerstoneofthe

viewingexperiencefordecades,therehasbeen

anoticeableshiftinhowaudiencesprioritize'must-see'sportsmoments.Fromtheriseofbreakoutathletestotheexpansionofemergingleagues,sportsincreasinglyserveasthe

culturalanchor

forafragmentedaudience.

Atthesametime,accesstosportingeventshasevolved,withmoremajoreventsexpanding

intostreaming.

Thefourthquarterof2025servedasapowerfultimeforsports,withtheNFL,collegefootball,theMajor

LeagueBaseballpostseason,andthestartofthe

NBAseasonallinplay.Duringthistime,sportseventsaccountedforawhopping29%ofalladsupported

viewingacrossbroadcast,cable,andstreaming.

Figure1.1

Sportsaccountedfornearly30%

ofalladsupportedTVviewingin4Q25

P25-54Shareofadsupportedtelevision,4Q25

Streaming

Broadcast

w/osports

Cable

w/osports

Source:Analysisof4Q25(9/29/25-12/28/25,NielsenNationalTVPanelDataaugmentedbyStreamingPlatformRatings

adsupportedincludesbroadcastandindependents,adsupportedcable,andstreamingminusnonadsupportedstreaming

SportsEventSummarytypeandlivestreamingeventsexcludedfrombroadcast,cable,andstreamingbucketsandre-aggregated

w/osports

Totalsports

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Differentplatforms,complementary

audiences

TheevolutionoftheNBA'sdistributionisaperfectcasestudyforthenewmulti-platformrealityoflivesports.

TheadditionofNBCprovidesbroadreachacrossfansofallages,whilestreaminggamesonPrimeVideo

bringsyoungerdigitalnativeswhowatchlesslinearTVintothefold.

Importantly,theconcentrationofanaudienceis

differentfromthevolume.SowhilePrimeVideo

deliversahigherpercentcompositionofadults18-34withitsstreams,NBCattractsacomparablenumberofadults18-34.Meanwhile,ABCandESPNaveragethe

highestnumberofviewersinthisdemographic.

Theuniqueageprofilesofeachplatformmightattractdifferentadvertisers,ortogethertheycanserveto

extendthereachforthesamebrand.Whateverthecase,thismulti-platformstrategyleveragesthehighimpactenvironmentoflivesports,andtheNBAhasreapedthebenefitsofitsnewdistributionmodel,

increasingviewershipby18%sofarthisseason.

Figure1.2

NBAregularseasonaudiencecomposition:Linearvs.Streaming

31.6%27.3%

21.1%

13.6%

6.4%

Persons2-17

Persons18-34

Persons35-49

Persons50-64

Persons65-99

Broadcast&CableStreaming

NBC&DisneyNetworksPrimeVideo

30.4%

19.4%

25.2%

17.7%

7.3%

Source:NielsenBigDataPlusPanel,NBAregularseasonthroughJanuary2026

Figure1.3

AverageNBAregularseasonviewershipadults18-34byplatform

351,208210,489215,268

ABC/ESPNNBCPrimeVideo

Source:NielsenBigData+Panel,NBAregularseasonthroughJanuary2026

Precisioninplay:Optimizingmulti-platformsportsinvestments|Unlockingincrementalreachinamultiscreenworld

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Andit’s

notjust

theregularseason…

Evenforthebiggestsportingevent

oftheyear,theSuperBowl,live

streaminghasbecomeafixture.

Muchliketheregularseason,

thereal

opportunity

liesinthenuances

betweenplatforms:whilestreamingskewsyounger,addingittoalinearbuycreatesamoredistributedanddiverseaudienceprofilethatcoverseverygeneration.

Figure1.4

SuperBowlLXaudienceprofilesFebruary8,2026

27.5%

30.1%

8.0%

16.4%

17.9%

12.8%

19.4%

21.5%

23.2%

23.1%

Persons2-17Persons18-34Persons35-49Persons50-64Persons65-99

Source:NielsenBigData+PanelandStreamingPlatformRatings.Peacock-onlyviewingbasedon6:40-10:28pmtimeperiod;audiencecompositionincludestotalPeacockusage,notjustSuperBowlviewing

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Leveraging

sports-adjacent

programmingintheFASTecosystem

Premiumlivesportseventsaren'ttheonlywayto

connectwithfans;sports-adjacentcontentoffersamoreaccessibleentrypointforbrandstoengagewiththatsameloyalaudience.Gracenotedata

showsthatanincreasingnumberofFASTchannelsarededicatedtosportscontent.

Whiletheseoutletsaregenerallydedicatedto

highlights,recaps,documentaries,andcommentary,theycanbeutilizedtoreachdedicatedfansin

game-adjacentenvironments.Forexample,Nielsendatashowsthatviewers

haveembracedsports

documentaries

inrecentyears,and

Blacksports

fansleanintosportscommentary

morethanthegeneralpopulation.

Figure1.5

TopFASTgenres

Bychannelcount

350

300

303

250

200220

150

100138

101

97

50

EntertainmentSportsRealityNewsandDrama

commentary

Source:July2024toFebruary2025Gracenoteglobalvideodata

Figure1.6

Growthofsports-relatedFASTchannelsovertimeNo.ofchannels

250

195

186

200

220

166

190

171

150

107

100113

50Jul2024Aug2024Sept2024Oct2024Nov2024Dec2024Jan2025Feb2025

Source:July2024toFebruary2025Gracenoteglobalvideodata

Precisioninplay:Optimizingmulti-platformsportsinvestments|Unlockingincrementalreachinamultiscreenworld

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Precisioninplay:Optimizingmulti-platformsportsinvestments|Unlockingincrementalreachinamultiscreenworld

Key

takeaways

“Bigreach”sportsmomentsarestillavailableandstandoutmorethanever.

TheexpansionofsportscontentonFAST

platformsoffersbrandsastrategicentry

pointandprovidesbothscalablereachandanaccessiblepathtosportsaudiencesoutsideoflivebroadcasts.

Inamulti-platformworld,there

areevenmorewaysforbrandstoengagewithsports.

Streamingandlinearofferdifferent

butcomplementaryaudienceprofiles.

Regardlessofwherelivesportslive(evenbehindapaywall),

therearealwaysads.

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Precisioninplay:Optimizingmulti-platformsportsinvestments|Unlockingincrementalreachinamultiscreenworld

HowNielsencanhelp

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