The demise of Main Street Sports Group, owner of the FanDuel-branded regional sports networks, was swift as anticipated.
The beleaguered company, formed from the ashes of its predecessor, Diamond Sports Group, after its prolonged bankruptcy, looked destined for collapse as reports began to surface of missed rights payments to franchises last December. A search for an emergency buyer in the form of London-based sports streamer DAZN bore no fruit. And now, Main Street will officially wind down operations when it airs its final games and first-round Stanley Cup Playoff action later this month.
Tom Friend of Sports Business Journal first reported news of the official wind-down process on Thursday.
Main Street’s shutdown leaves 13 NBA teams and six NHL clubs in limbo regarding their local broadcast situations for next season. For the NBA, this includes the Hawks, Hornets, Cavaliers, Pistons, Pacers, Clippers, Grizzlies, Heat, Bucks, Timberwolves, Thunder, Magic, and Spurs. In the NHL, the Hurricanes, Blue Jackets, Red Wings, Wild, Predators, and Blues will be seeking new local broadcast homes. The LA Kings, one of the seven teams currently under contract with Main Street, will continue on FanDuel Sports Network after the Los Angeles Angels purchased the channel last month.
In February, Puck reported that the NBA, anticipating a wind-down from Main Street following the current season, was looking to accelerate its timeline for a centralized local broadcast package that would bundle the in-market local rights for many of the league’s 30 teams into one product, which would then be sold to a streamer. Per the Sports Business Journal’s report on Thursday, a centralized local broadcast package now looks more likely to launch for the 2027-28 season, leaving teams to find one-year stopgap partnerships for next season.
For this reason, the NBA is reportedly urging teams to sign only one-year deals, or at least include an opt-out after one year, for the upcoming season. Ideally, the NBA would like to convince 20 or more teams to join its centralized package before going to market. YouTube TV, for instance, would only be interested in the package if at least 20 teams were included, the report indicates.
DAZN, which kicked the tires on purchasing Main Street and saving the company from insolvency, is approaching individual teams to be part of their one-year stopgap solution with the goal of gaining an inside track when the NBA goes to market with a centralized package in 2027-28. Other streaming platforms, such as Victory+ and ViewLift, are also mentioned as possibilities for teams seeking one-year deals next season.
Per the Sports Business Journal, none of the 13 NBA teams nor the seven NHL teams tied to Main Street have received local media rights payments in 2026. However, each team should receive “as much as 60% of their lost TV money” from Main Street’s creditors once they sign a dissolution agreement.
Details about likely go-forward plans for the six NHL franchises were not provided. Last month, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said the league has no plans to centralize local rights as the NBA and MLB do. That would seemingly leave teams to strike longer-term deals, perhaps with local over-the-air broadcasters and streamers, for next season and beyond.
About Drew Lerner
Drew Lerner is a staff writer for Awful Announcing and an aspiring cable subscriber. He previously covered sports media for Sports Media Watch. Future beat writer for the Oasis reunion tour.