The New York Yankees are the most successful franchise in Major League Baseball history, playing in the country’s biggest market. And as a result they have plenty of fans.
But it looks like those fans will soon need access to a Netflix subscription if they hope to watch a highly anticipated matchup for their favorite team.
“As part of the new three-year agreement between the MLB and the giant streamer, the Yankees’ March 25 opener at San Francisco will be Netflix’s first exclusive stream and will begin the 2026 season,” Andrew Marchand reported for The Athletic. “This primetime matchup is the only game that day, with the rest of the clubs opening the next day.”
As MLB looks to replace a broadcast contract it recently lost with ESPN, it has reached a deal with Netflix to stream next season’s opener as well as the upcoming Home Run Derby.
Sports fans in general are becoming more familiar with choosing between paying for streaming service subscriptions and missing some marquee games for their favorite teams as leagues negotiate lucrative and exclusive new contracts with a variety of platforms. Yankees fans, for instance, might already miss the team’s exclusive broadcasts on Apple TV+ on certain Friday nights.
For fans of baseball’s most historic franchise, it will be just one more potential subscription needed to watch their favorite team.
“For next season, the bulk of Yankees’ games will still be on its regional sports network, YES, and around 20 local games on Amazon Prime Video,” Marchand added. “It will also have national games on Fox, ESPN, TNT Sports, Apple TV+, NBC/Peacock, and now, on opening day, Netflix.”
Luckily for any Yankees fans who might be hesitant to sign up for another streaming platform, the baseball season is long and there will be plenty of time to make up for missing the first game.