Once upon a time, watching your team was easy.
If you lived in Boston, you knew exactly where to find the Red Sox: NESN. Maybe TV38 if you really want to date yourself. There were no spreadsheets, no bundles, no “Which app is that on again?” moments ten minutes after first pitch.
Today? You practically need a project manager.
A new survey from Hub Entertainment Research of 3,802 U.S. sports fans (ages 13–74, all with broadband, surveyed from June 24 to July 7, 2025) puts numbers behind what every fan already feels deep in their soul:
- 65% say it’s a hassle to subscribe to more than one app to watch a single sport’s season.
- 53% say finding sports on TV has gotten more confusing.
- 87% say they’ll still take on a new subscription if that’s what it takes to watch their favorite sport.
In other words: fans are frustrated… and also completely captive.
A Season Now Requires a Spreadsheet
The fragmentation is real.
NFL? Thursday Night Football is on Prime Video – but local Sunday games may require your local CBS station, which you can get through Paramount+… which may or may not be bundled with Prime.
The NBA? Prime or Peacock.
MLB? Peacock, ESPN+, and Apple TV+.
WNBA? ESPN. And Prime.
And just when you think you’ve mapped it out, a network announces a new bundle. ESPN and Fox team up on a streaming package. ESPN rolls out its first direct-to-consumer product. Sling introduces Day Passes so you can buy access like you’re fueling up at a gas station.
All of that is helpful – but it’s also proof that the system is patching itself instead of fixing itself.
Fans Don’t Want Choice. They Want Clarity.
We frame this as a “streaming war” or “rights battle,” but the reality is simpler:
Fans don’t care where the game is. They care that they can find it.
The emotional connection isn’t to the platform – it’s to the team.
And until someone creates a seamless, integrated experience, fans are forced to cobble together subscriptions like digital duct tape.
The Opportunity
There’s an opening for a company that doesn’t just aggregate links (sorry, Apple TV), but truly integrates experiences:
- One search.
- One schedule.
- One place to watch – regardless of who owns the rights this week.
The first platform to reduce friction instead of adding another layer on top?
That’s the one that wins.
And fans are telling us, loudly and clearly:
They’re ready for it… and they’ll pay for it.
