DAZN’s ViewLift move sets up high-stakes battle for local rights

DAZN is making its latest attempt to break into the U.S. local sports market by acquiring a platform that already powers several regional sports networks.

The streaming service announced an agreement to merge the streaming platform ViewLift into DAZN. ViewLift operates direct-to-consumer streaming services for several different U.S. regional sports networks, including Altitude Sports, Monumental Sports, NESN, Space City Home Network, and Chicago Sports Network.

The deal will not result in any changes for teams with existing relationships with ViewLift, but the deal allows DAZN and ViewLift to offer more optionality for teams looking for new media rights agreements.

This comes as DAZN is continuing to pitch its platform to the 20 teams that just left FanDuel Sports Network.

As part of these pitches, according to Sports Business Journal, DAZN has offered interested teams several different options to join its platform. One option is the current ViewLift model, where it operates and monetizes a direct-to-consumer streaming service but does not control local television rights.

Another option would involve DAZN holding the exclusive local rights to teams, with teams being paid between $8M and $15M in annual rights fees.

More teams joining DAZN exclusively would allow the streaming service to create a larger hub of local sports rights. Current teams with direct-to-consumer agreements with ViewLift could join this model in the future. But DAZN is not looking to create a streaming RSN similar to what Fubo, YouTube TV and the NBA itself has pitched to teams.

According to Sports Business Journal, Fubo is offering rights fees between $8M and $15M, while over-the-air players, including Gray Media, Scripps, and Nexstar, are making offers below $10M. Even the free streaming service Victory+ is making a play for these rights.

This suggests it won’t be easy for this play to work for DAZN, which has long struggled to enter the U.S. market, with several different attempts that have failed to move the needle. In the fall of 2018, the company reached a three-year digital rights agreement with Major League Baseball that included a whiparound show. That deal ended early in 2020, with reporting at the time suggesting that DAZN was unhappy with viewership.

In July 2019, DAZN tried to reach an agreement with Pat McAfee to simulcast The Pat McAfee Show. That too was short-lived, with the two sides parting ways in May 2020.

DAZN has taken a slightly different approach in the U.S. market since 2025, seeking to align itself with more established players. DAZN acquired the exclusive global rights to the 2025 FIFA Club World Cup and reached sublicense agreements with TNT Sports and Univision Deportes in the United States to get matches and its brand in front of more viewers.

In April, DAZN announced another sublicense with TNT Sports to put monthly boxing events that DAZN owns the rights to on regular television in the U.S.

But in the United States, DAZN still lacks the depth of rights that its competitors, like Peacock, Apple, and Prime Video, have, and thus lacks name recognition.

If Prime Video, Peacock, and DAZN are making similarly competitive offers to teams, why would a team go with the streaming service with the fewest other high-tier sports?

On the other hand, if DAZN can secure these local rights, that could go a long way toward changing its fortunes.

But with such tough competition, DAZN will need a lot to go its way for this play to work out.