While Major League Baseball may not have the same presence on ESPN as it once did, the league still accounts for a significant portion of the network’s programming, including a key slot on Sunday nights with 26 consecutive Sunday Night Baseball editions throughout the MLB season. Following the news that both sides have opted out of their rights deal after the 2025 season in a reportedly not-so-mutual split, ESPN will need to fill half a year’s worth of Sunday night slots starting in 2026.
What might ESPN’s new Sunday night schedule look like after this year? As Sports Media Watch’s Jon Lewis notes, it could be fairly straightforward.
Spring: NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament, Stanley Cup Playoffs
With the start of Sunday Night Baseball coinciding with the peak of March Madness, finding a replacement for the initial weeks of the season should be manageable. Currently, ESPN’s coverage of the NCAA Women’s Tournament Elite Eight airs in the afternoon due to SNB, and it would be a surprise if these games didn’t shift to primetime beginning in 2026. The National Championship Game presents a bit more of a challenge, as it is contractually required to air on ABC in the afternoon to avoid interfering with primetime network programming. However, having Sunday night available for an ESPN simulcast could alter that arrangement, especially considering the growing popularity of women’s sports.
As for the remainder of spring, expect ESPN to capitalize on its NHL media rights, showcasing the Stanley Cup Playoffs on Sunday nights. The previous primary candidate would have been the NBA, which will move to NBC on Sunday nights next season, potentially leading to significant channel flipping in the spring.
If the hockey schedule doesn’t cover every gap left in ESPN’s Sunday night programming, it’s notable that the network is also a rights holder for the United Football League (UFL) for both the regular season and postseason.
Summer: College World Series, WNBA, TGL(?)
While ESPN’s spring schedule may be clear-cut, summer options are less apparent. However, plenty of choices exist, with the College World Series perhaps being the most obvious, carrying through the end of June following the Stanley Cup Playoffs (Game 7 of last year’s Finals aired on June 24). Following that, it will likely be the WNBA’s opportunity to shine. A weekly primetime showcase seems inevitable given the league’s surging popularity in the Caitlin Clark era; with a schedule spanning from May to September and the postseason going into October, ESPN has considerable flexibility in showcasing these events. Additionally, Lewis highlights the NBA Summer League as a potential option, alongside the possible expansion of TGL’s schedule after its promising start.
Fall: US Open Tennis, WNBA Playoffs
The expanded US Open schedule offers ESPN another option starting in late August, potentially allowing the network to fill as many as three Sundays. After that, the WNBA Playoffs are expected to occupy a significant portion of ESPN’s Sunday night programming during the remainder of the baseball season. It’s difficult to deny that the biggest beneficiary of MLB’s split with ESPN may be the WNBA, which could help provide programming from mid-May to late October. Ultimately, how the network leverages this partnership will determine the composition of its future schedule.
