How Changing Consumer Behaviour is Reshaping the Sports Industry

Understanding consumer behaviours is a cornerstone of business and marketing.

As these behaviours evolve, the ability of a business, or entire industry, to adapt alongside them often determines their long-term success. 

The sports industry is no different. Current trends suggest that the way sport is consumed is undergoing significant change.

Recent shifts include how sport is broadcast and what platforms are used to do so, with some governing bodies turning away from external broadcasters in favour of streaming services.

There is also more emphasis now on the behind-the-scenes of an athlete’s life, club or organisation, as well as increasing consumption of highlights packages over full sporting events. 

This article will examine these trends to help aspiring professionals understand the industry they aim to work in.

The Battle for Broadcast Rights

Currently, the majority of live sport remains to be shown by established media companies. In the USA, cable television is still popular, with NBC, ESPN and CBS being some of the broadcasters who were awarded rights in most of the country’s recent sports deals.

However, many sporting bodies are beginning to experiment with non-traditional broadcasters. Examples include Netflix, Amazon Prime and Apple TV, while some leagues have their own in-house streaming services such as the NBA League Pass and Ligue 1+.

In 2018, the Premier League awarded broadcast rights to Amazon, who could stream 20 games a season, however the streaming giant opted not to bid again when their deal expired.

Traditional broadcasters prevailed and Sky now holds the rights to four of the five available packages, allowing them to show over 200 games per season. TNT was allocated the fifth.

When multiple broadcasters are involved, the competition for rights intensifies. As a result, the value of broadcast deals, particularly when the product is as sought-after as the Premier League, increases in favour of the sport, though this appears to be unsustainable for the broadcaster. 

While traditional media companies have struggled to make a profit in recent years, streaming platforms have historically been willing to absorb short-term losses as a means of getting more customers and, ultimately, a seat at the table.

“We’re going to get to a point where we take our entire network, our flagship programming, and make it available direct-to-consumer,” said ESPN Chairman Jimmy Pitaro, with ESPN+ already showing many live sporting events.

The migration of sports leagues and competitions to these established streaming platforms has already begun with differing outcomes. 

In 2022, MLS reached an agreement with Apple TV for a 10-year deal to broadcast their games. However, the deal was then revised to finish at the end of the 2028-29 season instead, with Apple TV announcing around the same time that they have bought exclusive broadcast rights to Formula 1 in the US, emphasising that both leagues and streaming platforms are still very much experimenting to see what works.

In-House Streaming Services

Another alternative is that individual leagues opt to produce and broadcast their own content.

Often seen as a risk as it would initially involve losing out on significant sums of money in traditional broadcast deals before needing to heavily invest to produce the content themselves, some have had to resort to in-house streaming as a necessity.

France’s top flight, Ligue 1, is an example. 

In 2024, Ligue 1 signed a four-year deal with DAZN worth approximately €400 million ($436.4 million) per season to broadcast eight of the nine games played per round.

However, in 2025, the deal was terminated, with Ligue 1 turning its attention to a direct-to-consumer (DTC) streaming platform called Ligue 1+.

Taking on the eight games that DAZN previously broadcast, Ligue 1+ has performed better than the organisation had expected, but still leaves clubs earning less than they had forecast. 

It is thought that €142 million (US$166.6 million) in revenue earned by the platform is set to be distributed to Ligue 1 clubs by the end of the current season, however club SCO Angers has stated that the figure they are set to receive is far lower than previous years.

How Sports Content is Evolving

One area that has seen notable growth, however, is the rise of behind-the-scenes sporting content. Featuring heavily on DTC streaming platforms, documentaries that show the away-from-play lives of athletes, or exclusive access to clubs, have interested the consumer.

Reports have suggested that with the rise of social media, fans feel closer than ever to their favourite sporting brands, and documentaries enable this. Sunderland ‘till I Die is an example—a docuseries on Netflix based on the supporters and hierarchy of AFC Sunderland which Charlie Methven, GIS board member and former Sunderland Executive Director, believed to have exceeded the estimated 20m viewers for the famous Formula 1 series Drive to Survive.

Such series indicate a future that will see fans consume much more than the sporting event itself. Recent polls have suggested that younger fans are less likely to watch live sports in full, with attention keenly on highlight packages instead. 

Many governing bodies are accepting this trend, including FIFA. Ahead of the 2026 World Cup, the global governing body has agreed a deal with TikTok that will see “parts of matches” being live streamed on the social media app.

The deal will also see popular online personalities create exclusive content for the app, which is part of a wider trend that is seeing fans consume sport through their favourite influencers. In late 2025, popular YouTuber Mark Goldbridge was awarded rights to broadcast 20 Bundesliga games on his channel, with other content creators and fan channels given the same deal. 

What This Means for the Sports Industry

As consumer behaviour continues to evolve, broadcasters and negotiators in the sports industry must adapt if they want to maintain revenue and engage their audience. 

The growth in popularity of streaming platforms has posed an unprecedented challenge to traditional media, and sports governing bodies are still trying to navigate the options at their disposal. In-house streaming is another opportunity, but is one that is yet to be proven as profitable in the short-term.

The content itself that is produced is also changing, as we have seen a shift from traditional live viewers to the highlight and influencer focus that comes with the digital age.

For aspiring professionals, understanding these trends is increasingly important, and education can help to do so.

GIS students are supported by expert lecturers who provide industry insight and global networks in the fast-paced sports industry. To explore our range of programmes, view our course offerings.

Article by Zakaria Anani