Explore how the NFL’s global growth and developments across sports, streaming, music and film are shaping the current sports, media and entertainment landscape.
The past two weeks highlighted the growing scale and breadth of the sports and entertainment economy. The NFL opened its 2026 season with more than 100,000 fans at its first regular-season game in Australia, while industry estimates indicate the league is on pace to surpass its long-standing $25 billion annual revenue target this season. Capital also remained active across sports, from Clearlake’s £950 million purchase of additional Chelsea stakes to new investments in HYROX and TMRW Sports. Meanwhile, LIV Golf entered Chapter 11 restructuring. Elsewhere, record U.S. crowds across rugby and soccer and major developments across streaming, music and film highlighted the continued evolution of the broader SME landscape.
The NFL Opens 2026 With Global Growth on Display
The NFL opened its 2026 season with a record-setting debut in Australia, continued domestic audience strength and rising revenue, while Commissioner Roger Goodell extended his tenure through the 2030 season.
NFL's first regular-season game in Australia draws 100,021 fans and 21.7 million global viewers
The NFL's first regular-season game in Australia drew 100,021 fans to the Melbourne Cricket Ground and averaged 21.7 million viewers globally, including 18.5 million in the U.S. The attendance ranked seventh among regular-season games in NFL history, while viewers from more than 200 countries and territories tuned in on Netflix.
NFL Kickoff Game draws 25.1 million viewers
NBC and Peacock's season-opening Kickoff Game averaged 25.1 million viewers, marking the fourth consecutive year the event has topped 25 million. While viewership declined roughly 11% from last year's 28.3 million and was the lowest since 2022, the game aired on an unusual Wednesday night and still drew 5% more viewers than the NFL's only prior Wednesday opener in 2012.
Goodell extends through 2031 as the NFL looks toward its next media and labor negotiations
NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell agreed to a four-year contract extension through March 2031, his fifth since taking over in 2006. During his tenure, league revenue has grown from roughly $8.5 billion in 2010, when Goodell established a long-term $25 billion annual revenue target, to more than $23 billion today. The extension comes as the league approaches major negotiations on two fronts: its current media agreements reach an opt-out window in 2029, while the current collective bargaining agreement expires in March 2031.
U.S. Sports Fandom Reflects Growing Breadth
Football remains America's favorite sport by a wide margin, while new polling and record attendance across soccer and rugby point to a broader U.S. sports audience.
Football remains America's favorite sport as soccer reaches a record high
Football remains Americans' favorite sport to watch, according to new Gallup polling, with 31% naming it their favorite. Soccer reached a record 9%, up two percentage points from its previous high and now approaching basketball (11%) and baseball (10%) for second place. Meanwhile, a record 20% of respondents said they did not have a single favorite sport, the highest share in Gallup’s trend.
South Africa-New Zealand draws record U.S. rugby crowd in Baltimore
A crowd of 68,173 attended South Africa's match against New Zealand at M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore, setting a U.S. attendance record for an international rugby match. The record crowd adds to signs of growing U.S. interest in rugby as the country prepares to host the 2031 Men's Rugby World Cup and 2033 Women's Rugby World Cup.
Chicago Fire sets club attendance record with 63,094 fans
The Chicago Fire drew a club-record 63,094 fans to Soldier Field for their 1-1 draw against Inter Miami, establishing a new attendance high for the franchise. The sellout added another major U.S. soccer crowd following this summer's World Cup and came as Chicago extended its streak to seven MLS matches without a loss.
Capital Continues to Reshape Sports Ownership and Business Models
Recent activity across Chelsea, HYROX and TMRW Sports highlighted continued capital deployment across established and emerging sports businesses, while LIV Golf’s Chapter 11 filing provided a contrasting outcome.
Clearlake increases control of Chelsea in £950 million deal
Todd Boehly and Mark Walter agreed to sell their stakes in Chelsea FC to majority owner Clearlake Capital for approximately £950 million ($1.27 billion), in a transaction that values the Premier League club at roughly £5 billion including debt. The deal ends Boehly and Walter's ownership involvement and consolidates control under Clearlake, which has been the club's majority investor since its £4.25 billion acquisition in 2022.
L Catterton-led group acquires controlling stake in HYROX at a reported ~$700 million valuation
A consortium led by L Catterton acquired a controlling stake in HYROX in a transaction valuing the fitness-racing business at approximately €600 million ($700 million). HYROX combines running and functional fitness in standardized competitions and has expanded rapidly across international markets, with the new owners looking to build the business beyond events into a broader fitness and lifestyle platform.
TMRW Sports nears a $1 billion-plus valuation in new funding
TMRW Sports, the Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy-backed parent of TGL and the upcoming WTGL, is finalizing a funding round that would value the company at more than $1 billion, roughly double its valuation following a 2024 Series A. The company is also working with the NFL on flag football initiatives ahead of the sport's Olympic debut in 2028.
LIV Golf files for Chapter 11 as it seeks a new financial structure
LIV Golf filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on September 8, listing $500 million to $1 billion in estimated liabilities. Fourteen current and former players are among its largest unsecured creditors, with more than $45 million in player claims. The company secured approximately $50 million in bankruptcy financing from Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, while the proposed restructuring contemplates approximately $300 million of new investment from BC Partners and other investors.
Streaming Giants Organize as Sports Distribution Evolves
As live sports become increasingly important to streaming platforms, some of the industry's largest companies are forming a coordinated policy voice around the rules governing digital distribution.
Netflix, Amazon and YouTube form new streaming policy coalition
Netflix, Amazon and YouTube formed the Streaming Access and Choice Alliance, a new coalition focused on public policy affecting streaming distribution, including live sports. The group plans to advocate for technology-neutral policies as more sports rights move across digital platforms. Its launch comes as federal regulators examine the shift of sports rights to streaming, including the impact on consumer costs and access, local broadcasters, and whether the Sports Broadcasting Act has implications for games distributed outside traditional broadcast television.
Music and Film IP Continue to Scale
A major music-industry combination, a record-setting theatrical release and a new AI licensing agreement highlighted the growing scale and evolving monetization of premium entertainment IP.
BMG and Concord combine to create a $14 billion independent music company
BMG and Concord completed their combination on September 1 after receiving regulatory approval, creating a new global music company operating under the BMG name. The combined business spans publishing, recorded music, theatrical rights and digital distribution and has been valued at approximately $14 billion in industry reporting, projecting roughly $2.2 billion in 2026 revenue and more than $730 million in pro forma EBITDA
"The Odyssey" becomes Universal's highest-grossing film at $1.68 billion
Christopher Nolan's "The Odyssey" became the highest-grossing release in Universal Pictures' history, reaching approximately $1.68 billion worldwide and surpassing "Jurassic World." Universal said the film had generated approximately $601 million domestically and $1.08 billion internationally as of September 12.
ElevenLabs, valued at $11 billion, strikes a global AI music deal with Universal Music Group
AI audio company ElevenLabs signed a multi-year licensing agreement with Universal Music Group to launch a new AI-powered music platform and jointly develop AI audio products for artists and songwriters. The deal is ElevenLabs’ first with a major music company and follows its $11 billion valuation from a $500 million funding round in February.
And On a Fun Note...
Is Apple TV becoming the new HBO? Apple led this year’s Emmys with 29 wins, while "Widow’s Bay" set a record with 14 awards on its own. Not bad for a streaming service that launched less than seven years ago. HBO still won Best Drama with "The Pitt", so the crown is hardly changing hands overnight, but Apple increasingly appears to be borrowing from the HBO playbook: a relatively focused slate of premium shows. As someone who already pays for more streaming subscriptions than I care to admit, I suppose this is one more reason not to cancel this one.
