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NBCUniversal wrapped its 2025鈥�26 Upfront with its highest ad sales volume in history, fueled by live events like the Olympics, FIFA World Cup, and Super Bowl LX. Sports volume rose 45% year over year, while Peacock grew 20%, now representing nearly a third of NBCU鈥檚 total Upfront commitments. Over $1 billion came from programmatic demand, with a 60% shift toward advanced audience buying. In a year where industry-wide Upfront spend is expected to shrink, NBCU鈥檚 performance showcases the power of premium content, audience precision, and diversified ad tech. Small business gains and cross-channel strategies helped NBCU stand out in a cautious market.

The news: Cannes Lions 2025 kicks off June 16, with media companies and platforms turning the festival into a proving ground for brand innovation. Spotify is merging live acts like Cardi B with audiobook tastings and celebrity panels, while Canva hosts CMO roundtables alongside design influencers. Google, Uber, and Influential are anchoring talks on TV, sports, and creator-driven engagement鈥攚ith yacht-side podcasts and fundraising activations adding a new layer of purpose. Our take: This year鈥檚 Cannes isn鈥檛 about opulence鈥攊t鈥檚 about ownership. Brands that bring substance, not just spectacle, will emerge with more than headlines鈥攖hey鈥檒l leave with lasting partnerships and fresh strategic playbooks.

Amazon challenges TV giants: Prime Monday upfront slot showcases NBA rights, aiming for $750 million in ad revenues from streaming sports

TV networks and streaming services are becoming more selective about producing new content. As a result, reruns of licensed shows and streamed live sports will become more important to marketers.

The news: Paramount reported mixed quarterly earnings and upfront results, underscoring the limitations of a content portfolio lacking major sports rights to drive engagement. The company鈥檚 biggest blow came from streaming service Paramount+, which lost 1.3 million subscribers in Q2鈥攕omething the company attributed to 鈥渢he expiration of an international hard bundle deal.鈥� Our take: Paramount鈥檚 results depict a company capable of staying afloat, but struggling to build offerings that drive increased viewership and advertiser investment鈥攏ecessitating that the company build its sports offerings to grow as competitors dive head-first into sports programming.

The news: As the NFL season approaches and digital video becomes a sports destination, fans are looking to new streaming services to stay caught up鈥攁nd 35% are planning to subscribe to a new service to watch fall and winter sports, per CivicScience data. Our take: Sports will remain a key opportunity for brands to reach engaged and passionate audiences鈥攂ut as fragmentation worsens, advertisers must prioritize cross-platform strategies that unlock consistent exposure.

Fubo is launching Fubo Sports, a 鈥渟kinny鈥� standalone sports streaming bundle with a lower cost than its existing plans and pay TV competitors. The bundle offers access to more than 20 sports-focused channels, including ESPN Unlimited, per Variety. If Fubo leans into being a low-cost, high-intensity sports hub, it can carve out a profitable niche, even if it lags behind in subscriber count and scale. But without more exclusive rights or differentiation, Fubo Sports could risk being seen as a less complete version of other bundles.

The news: Fox is teaming up with ESPN to bundle their upcoming sports streaming services, per Deadline. The bundle will focus on Fox One and ESPN and marks the first major sports rights package, though programming from Fox鈥檚 broadcast network and its local stations will also be available. Our take: An ESPN and Fox bundle will undoubtedly unlock major advertising opportunities for the channels as advertisers turn to sports as a key driver of revenues.

The news: YouTube has made an official inquiry about purchasing the rights to future Academy Awards ceremonies in its latest live events push, per Bloomberg. The move comes after viewership increased slightly for the most recent Oscars ceremony, driven by simultaneous airing on ABC and Hulu. Our take: Rather than competing head-on with broadcast, YouTube can position itself as a complementary streaming partner that extends the Oscars鈥� reach by highlighting shifting viewership trends that capture audiences broadcast alone struggles to reach and its edge in premium video advertising.

Streameast, the world鈥檚 largest illegal sports-streaming hub, has been shut down in a coordinated sting led by Egyptian authorities and the Alliance for Creativity and Entertainment. The operation dismantled more than 80 domains that drew 1.6 billion visits over the past year. The crackdown comes as soccer and NFL seasons begin, underscoring how piracy disrupts rights holders by siphoning revenues from subscriptions and ads. Yet piracy remains resilient: copycats are already emerging to tap fans frustrated with fragmented, costly streaming options. With digital sports viewership surpassing pay TV, the industry faces an urgent challenge to keep audiences in paid ecosystems.

The news: TikTok renewed its Lionel Messi-focused live broadcast deal with Major League Soccer (MLS) after a successful 2024 livestream, per a blog post. TikTok will partner with Apple TV to broadcast four select matches in the current MLS season, with a dedicated camera angle focused on Messi during each match. Our take: TikTok and Apple TV鈥檚 newest move is another bid to capitalize on a well-known athlete in a profitable genre, where advertising opportunities are plentiful and success is essentially guaranteed. Sports are one of the most reliable ad environments, offering scale, loyalty, and global reach.

The top pain point for adults worldwide trying to watch live sports is being unable to access the games they want to watch, per Altman Solon.

The agency and marketing world is undergoing a strategic shift, with M&A activity surging in AI, experiential, and sports sectors. AI is no longer optional鈥攆irms like R/GA, Real Chemistry, and The Shipyard are acquiring to integrate automation, content generation, and efficiency into operations. Experiential marketing is also bouncing back, with global spending surpassing $128 billion and deals like BeCore and JetFuel reflecting renewed momentum. Meanwhile, sports marketing is booming, with Publicis and M&C Saatchi expanding to capture rising media rights value and digital viewership. Across sectors, the common thread is impact: marketers want scalable, measurable solutions that deliver real results.

Live sports (low disruption). Key market dynamics. The NFL 鈥淪unday Ticket鈥� deal upped the ante for YouTube and live sports. But the costs associated with securing this type of top-tier sports coverage means it鈥檚 an isolated case, at least for now.

On today鈥檚 podcast episode, we discuss if AI development is slowing down or speeding up, when it鈥檚 all said and done what happens to TikTok, if live sports are under threat from highlights, the potential impact of impending tariffs, which sports kids play the most, and more. Tune in to the discussion with Senior Director of Podcasts and host Marcus Johnson, Senior Director of Forecasts Oscar Orozco, Principal Forecasting Writer Ethan Cramer-Flood, and Senior Forecasting Analyst Zach Goldner.

The trend: Brands are ramping up investment in women鈥檚 sports to attract diverse audiences in an underserved sector. Snapchat partnered with Togethxr, a sports media company focused on women in sports. Kim Kardashian-owned Skims partnered with League One Volleyball in a deal that will see Skims become the official sleepwear, loungewear, and intimates partner of the league. Our take: Smart, forward-thinking brands will follow in the footsteps of Snapchat and Skims, capitalizing on women鈥檚 sports as an undersaturated market with strong potential to drive action before hitting its ceiling.

The news: The NFL may dominate sports viewership, but brands are also tuning into sports with smaller, but highly engaged, audiences. A Harris Poll report found that 70% of soccer fans are more excited for the World Cup because it will be hosted in North America. Beyond soccer, women鈥檚 sports is gaining momentum as a critical ad opportunity. WNBA team deals have increased 52% in two years, per SponsorUnited. Our take: Advertisers looking to reach tuned-in audiences at a lower cost of entry should view sports advertising opportunities like soccer and women鈥檚 sports as critical investments, not a last resort.

The news: Netflix will offer linear TV content from French broadcaster TF1 including scripted shows and live sports in France beginning next summer, the two companies announced at Cannes Lions 2025. TF1 will distribute content and live broadcasts on Netflix鈥檚 platform, opening the door for future deals with other broadcasters. TF1 reaches 58 million monthly viewers, per the announcement.

Yes, but: Popular originals and key sports rights like the NBA, WNBA, NASCAR, and NFL boost Prime鈥檚 advertiser appeal. Though still behind traditional TV in live sports, Amazon is closing the gap, retaining viewers longer and increasing ad impressions. Meanwhile, YouTube鈥檚 vast but user-generated content mix poses brand-safety challenges that make some advertisers cautious.

The news: Live-streamer Sling TV debuted day, weekend, and weeklong streaming passes as monthly subscription costs escalate. Consumers can buy a Day Pass for $4.99, a Friday-Sunday pass for $9.99, or a Week Pass for $14.99. Passes don鈥檛 auto-renew. All three passes offer access to the same 34 channels on Sling鈥檚 Orange package, including ESPN, TNT, A&E, Comedy Central, and more. Our take: If its short-term passes are successful, we can expect more streamers to follow suit and potentially offer popular IP for rent鈥攖hink 鈥淪quid Game鈥� on Netflix or 鈥淭he Gilded Age鈥� on HBO Max. That would allow advertisers to target specific, price-conscious audiences.

Nearly 3 in 10 North American adults say they returned to pay TV after cutting the cord to watch major live events, per TiVo; about 1 in 4 specifically cited live sports as the main draw. Only 9.1% have six or more subscriptions, per Attest. Our take: Streaming has become the default home for both daily viewing and mass hits, fundamentally reshaping TV鈥檚 competitive balance.

Sports in an exception. In 2024, live sports CPMs grew even as total linear TV CPMs dropped. There鈥檚 an expectation that the same thing will happen this year. TV networks will adapt by bundling sports with their other programming and requiring that advertisers buy the package rather than accessing sports a la carte. Streaming ad prices are declining as well.

The news: The 2025 NBA Finals drew just 10.2 million viewers on average, among the weakest results in two decades鈥攜et Game 7 peaked at 19.3 million, the highest since 2019. Traditional ratings miss the full picture, though: social views on NBA Finals content soared 215% year over year to 5 billion. Our take: Gen Z sports fans are watching differently鈥攙ia highlights, short clips, and mobile-first formats on YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok. TV still matters, but leagues like the NBA must master new distribution models. With streaming growth and a massive $76B media deal in place, the future is already digital.

Pharma companies advertise heavily on evening news programs and live sporting events that draw tons of viewers. But linear TV viewership is down overall in favor of digital mediums. And advertising on this channel has gotten more expensive, per the WSJ.