Report: Other NBCSports RSNs Not On The Block

Comcast Corp. is not in active negotiations to sell NBC Sports Philadelphia despite agreeing to divest one of its six regional sports networks on Tuesday, according to The Business Journal citing a source.

The company has agreed to sell its majority stake in NBC Sports Washington to Monumental Sports & Entertainment, which is owned by Washington Wizards and Capitals owner Ted Leonsis. Monumental already owned 33% of the network and now will pick up the Philadelphia-based media giant’s 67% stake for an undisclosed price.

Comcast (subsidiary NBCUniversal owns all or part of six RSNs, including NBC Sports Philadelphia. A Wall Street Journal report last year said that the RSNs could be offered for streaming through owner NBCUniversal's Peacock service or simply divested, with professional sports teams as potential buyers.

An NBCU spokesman declined to comment but a source said that the company was not in active negotiations to sell its other RSNs. The Sports Business Journal, a sister publication of the Philadelphia Business Journal, reported the sale of the D.C. network is a one-off and that Comcast/NBCU is not looking to unload its other RSNs. It described Monumental as an “aggressive and willing buyer,” making the sale a unique situation. NBC Sports Washington has television broadcast rights to the Wizards and Capitals. Monumental also owns the Washington Mystics of the WNBA, the G League’s Go-Go and the NBA 2K League’s District Gaming, in addition to Capital One Arena in D.C.

The Sports Business Journal said Leonsis plans to combine the RSN with its existing streaming service called Monumental Sports Network.

Like in Washington, NBC Sports Philadelphia is majority-owned by Comcast but the Phillies own a 25% stake and a portion of advertising revenue as part of its 25-year, $2.5 billion broadcast agreement signed in 2014. The Flyers are also owned by Comcast Spectactor, a unit of Comcast.

The divestiture by Comcast should not come as a surprise as cord-cutting has eaten into a huge chunk of the audience for regional sports networks. A report from S&P Global Market Intelligence said that regional sports networks saw their subscribers decline by 23% between 2014 and 2020.

NBCU pared down sports operations significantly during the pandemic. NBCSP laid off 17 employees in August 2020 as part of broader cuts by NBCU, the last in a string of staff reductions that coincided with a strategic shift away from talk shows to focus almost exclusively on game coverage.