The National Hockey League (NHL) has reached a new multi-year broadcast agreement with the Walt Disney Co (NYSE:DIS).
The deal will see NHL hockey games, including the Stanley Cup playoffs, broadcast on ABC and ESPN, as well as Disney streaming platforms ESPN+ and Hulu.
Under the deal, which runs through the season ending in 2028, ABC will air the Stanley Cup finals four times. There also will be 100 exclusive regular-season games each year on ABC, ESPN or the company’s streaming platforms.
Disney is paying $300 million U.S. annually for the NHL broadcast rights. The agreement reflects Disney’s aggressive shift into streaming, with plenty of coverage heading to its online outlets.
Some of the NHL games will be carried on Hulu, Disney’s broad entertainment streaming service. And the league’s package of out-of-market games, previously offered on NHL.com, will move to ESPN+, the media giant’s $6 U.S. per month sports streaming service at no additional cost.
Comcast Corp.’s (NASDAQ:CMCSA) NBC television network had been the league’s main media partner, with a deal worth about $200 million U.S. a year that runs through the end of the current NHL season.
