While the Royals’ front office has been busy in the first part of the offseason finding ways to upgrade the team on the field for 2025, the business operations group has been busy finding a way to help as many fans as possible watch that team.
The answer is that the Royals are following a similar path as 2024.
The Royals on Tuesday announced an agreement with Diamond Sports Group for games during the 2025 season to continue to be produced and distributed by FanDuel Sports Network (recently rebranded from Bally Sports). This deal is focused on 2025, Royals president of business operations Brooks Sherman said, with the organization able to re-evaluate their options next offseason.
FanDuel Sports Network Kansas City will continue to deliver live games to fans across cable and satellite as well as a streaming package directly through the network, which has offered an in-market, direct-to-consumer option for Royals games since 2022. The app has gone through major upgrades and worked “through some kinks” since then, Sherman said, and the Royals are confident in the product as they head into 2025.
In 2024, the Royals’ linear viewership was up more than 30% and the streaming audience grew more than 200%, according to the team. The Royals say they ended last season with more than 40,000 streaming subscribers, with more than half watching every game for at least 90 minutes. Royals games had the biggest viewership growth in baseball, according to the club.
That growth, especially with the Royals coming off a successful 86-win season with a postseason berth, was part of the reason Royals stuck with FanDuel Sports Network, Sherman said. The other option was to join Major League Baseball’s production group, which is planning to produce and distribute broadcasts of at least six teams this coming season.
No comments:
Post a Comment