Netflix continues its effort to expand its streaming of live sporting events, now making a push into Japan.
MLB and the streaming giant have agreed to a media rights deal in which Netflix will be the exclusive broadcaster of the 2026 World Baseball Classic in Japan.
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The deal does not apply to broadcasts in the United States, where the 2026 WBC will be broadcast on Fox and MLB Network.
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While this only applies to live and on-demand streaming in Japan, the deal is significant for MLB and Netflix. This will be the first live sporting event Netflix will stream in Japan. In the U.S., the streaming platform has broken into live sports by streaming boxing matches, WWE events and NFL regular-season games.
And amid MLB’s renegotiation of broadcast rights previously attached to ESPN, Netflix is reportedly set to add the All-Star Home Run Derby.
The World Baseball Classic is a huge event in Japan, which has won three of the five tournaments since the event launched in 2006. That includes the 2023 WBC, in which the Japanese team featured MLB stars including Shohei Ohtani, Yu Darvish and Roki Sasaki and defeated Team USA in the championship final.
“With Netflix already in millions of Japanese homes, we are excited to deliver a new kind of viewing experience that brings fans even closer to the action, the players, and the heart of the tournament, wherever they are,” said Kaata Sakamoto, Netflix vice president of content in Japan, in a statement.
“We look forward to working with leading Japanese partners to make the World Baseball Classic a true nationwide celebration, and to deliver innovative live entertainment for our members,” he added.
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In 2023, six of Japan’s seven games drew audiences of over 30 million viewers in the country, according to Sports Business Journal. On Japanese TV, the team’s quarterfinal win over Italy attracted approximately 38 million viewers, more than watched any telecast during the 2021 Tokyo Olympic. (By comparison, an NFL divisional playoff game would draw that large an audience in the U.S.)
Those numbers were easily the best among any of the countries in which the WBC was broadcast.
Japan will be part of Pool C in the World Baseball Classic, along with Australia, South Korea, Czechia and Chinese Taipei. They will play at the Tokyo Dome from March 5 to 10. The semifinals and finals will be played at loanDepot Park in Miami, with the championship game scheduled for March 17.
