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The Atlanta Braves were one of the many teams to lose their agreement with FanDuel Sports Network following the bankruptcy of the regional sports network, and their recent earnings report suggests they are taking a financial hit as a result.
The Braves, the only publicly traded MLB team, revealed their Q2 earnings, which showed a 10% decline in media revenue compared to Q2 last year. The Braves earned $72.85 million in media revenue in Q2 2026, compared to $81.07 million last year. The media revenue includes money earned by the Braves from both local and national deals.
The hit gets bigger when making year-over-year comparisons combining Q1 and Q2. In the first six months of 2026, the Braves’ media revenue is down 12%, from $85.36 million in 2025 to $75.37 million in 2026. Notably, while the Braves’ total revenue was down 2% overall in Q2, it is actually up 5% for the year so far.
The Braves’ media revenue was down substantially more in Q1, though it accounted for substantially less revenue. The team made $2.52 million in media revenue in Q1, down 44% from $4.29 million in the same period in 2025. Because the MLB season begins late in the first quarter, most local television revenue is recognized during Q2 and Q3.
In their earnings report, the Braves countered that the decrease in media revenue is actually due to the “timing of revenue recognition under BravesVision linear distribution agreements compared to our previous long-term local broadcasting arrangement.” The Braves own BravesVision, while under FanDuel Sports Network they simply received regular rights payments without owning the network.
We won’t have to wonder if the Braves are really right about the decline being the result of payment timing. Thanks to being publicly traded, the Braves will also release Q3 and Q4 earnings in due course. That will tell us a lot more about how this arrangement is working out for the franchise.
For many years, regional sports networks were the answer for teams seeking consistent media rights revenue. But on account of cord-cutting and the collapse of major regional sports network groups, teams are still searching for a new consistent revenue source.
At least through the first half of 2026, the Braves certainly aren’t making more media revenue than they did with FanDuel Sports Network, and they remain tied to the weakening cable bundle. However, teams that have left the bundle in pursuit of greater accessibility have also encountered problems. The free Victory+ streaming service ended three major broadcast agreements in recent weeks—with the Dallas Stars, Texas Rangers and NWSL—because it was struggling to find funding.
Many have pointed to aggregated streaming RSNs, which would see deep-pocketed streamers like Amazon and YouTube bid for an entire league’s local rights, as the answer. Only time will tell if that prediction proves right.
The post Braves media revenue falls 12% after FanDuel Sports Network exit appeared first on Awful Announcing.
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