Diamond Sports Group and St. Louis Cardinals Reach Multi-Year Renewal of Local TV Rights; Adds New DTC Streaming Option

Diamond Sports Group and St. Louis Cardinals Reach Multi-Year Renewal of Local TV Rights; Adds New DTC Streaming Option By SVG Staff

Friday, November 8, 2024 - 10:50 am

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Diamond Sports Group and the St. Louis Cardinals announce a new, multi-year linear and digital rights agreement through which Diamond will continue as the Cardinals' exclusive local media partner. While financial details of the agreement were not disclosed, Cardinals President Bill DeWitt III told SBJ that the franchise will probably be a little bit north of 20% in terms of the haircut of what our rights fees might otherwise have been in an undisrupted world.

Under the agreement, FanDuel Sports Network Midwest will remain the home of the Cardinals, broadcasting all games that are not exclusively televised nationally, as well as pre and postgame shows and original programming. For the first time, subscribers to FanDuel Sports Network on a direct-to-consumer ( DTC ) basis will have access to games in the extensive Cardinals TV territory. Additionally, pay TV customers will be able to stream games and other programming on the FanDuel Sports Network app by authenticating with their pay TV credentials. More information regarding DTC subscriptions, including pricing, will be announced at a later date.

David Preschlack, CEO of Diamond, states: We are excited about deepening our relationship with the Cardinals and expanding our reach by delivering games to fans on a DTC basis. As we progress towards emergence from bankruptcy, we remain committed to providing fans in the Midwest region with high quality broadcasts through our linear and digital offerings and meeting fans where they are in the evolving viewership model. We remain in discussions with our other MLB team partners on go-forward plans, and we are confident that our linear and digital framework drives maximum value.

FanDuel Sports Network Midwest, formerly known as Bally Sports Midwest, is a joint venture part owned by entities affiliated with the Cardinals.

Bill DeWitt III, president of the Cardinals, states: We are pleased to enhance and expand our long-term partnership with Diamond and FanDuel Sports Network Midwest. We valued the continuity for our fans of staying on the same network as the Blues, and we are excited that we will now be able to expand access to our games and other great Cardinals content across multiple platforms next year.

LINK:	https://www.sportsvideo.org/2024/11/08/diamond-sports-group-and-st-lou...
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