Main Street Sports stands on the edge of a shutdown that could reshape how fans watch local games across the country. Everything now hinges on a bid from London‑based DAZN, which is trying to acquire Main Street and its sixteen FanDuel‑branded regional sports networks.
A Crisis Spreading Across the Country
The crisis touches every region where the networks still operate. FanDuel RSNs carry teams across the Midwest, the South, the Mountain West, the Great Lakes, and the West Coast. Pressure grows each day as missed payments ripple through the leagues and force executives to confront the future of local sports broadcasting.
DAZN Sees a Major Opening in the U.S. Market
DAZN views the turmoil as a rare opportunity to enter the U.S. market in a major way. The streamer wants to acquire all sixteen networks and build direct relationships with MLB, the NBA, and the NHL. The move would expand DAZN far beyond combat sports and place it alongside Netflix, Apple, Amazon Prime, and YouTube as a major player in live sports.
Missed Payments Trigger Alarm Across Leagues
The trouble began when Main Street failed to make a December payment to the St. Louis Cardinals. The situation escalated on January 6, when thirteen NBA teams did not receive their scheduled rights payments. Those missed payments triggered alarm inside league offices, where executives now warn that the next few weeks will determine the fate of sixteen networks and twenty eight teams.
Shutdown Looms if No Deal Is Reached
The deadline falls between late January and early February. If DAZN and Main Street cannot reach a deal, Main Street plans to shut down after the 2026 NBA and NHL seasons. That collapse would return local rights to many teams for the first time in decades and accelerate a shift that has been building for years.
Leagues Preparing Backup Plans
If the DAZN deal collapses, the leagues have backup plans. The NBA and NHL expect to launch their own streaming services in the 2026 and 2027 seasons. Major League Baseball already controls broadcasts for the Diamondbacks, Padres, and Rockies, and expects to add the Washington Nationals, who broke away from MASN. MLB has told its remaining FanDuel teams that it can take over their broadcasts by spring training.
Experts Say Leagues May Welcome the Shift
Sports media branding expert Jeff Dennis believes the leagues may not fear that outcome.
“Every major U.S. league is working toward a more complete direct to consumer model,” Dennis said. “If teams regain their local rights, leagues like MLB, the NBA, and the NHL could finally bundle local games into their own streaming packages, something they’ve never been able to do under the regional sports network system.”
The Warning Signs Were Always There
The warning signs were visible long before Main Street Sports took control of the former Diamond Sports networks. Diamond’s bankruptcy exposed a system collapsing under the weight of cord cutting, shrinking subscriber revenue, and long term rights deals that no longer matched the economics of modern television.
When Main Street stepped in, it inherited the same broken model, the same debt pressure, and the same unsustainable contracts. In hindsight, the deal may have been doomed from the start. Main Street never had the financial cushion or structural advantages needed to fix a business that had already fallen apart, and the missed payments to the Cardinals and thirteen NBA teams only confirmed what many insiders feared: the RSN model was running out of road.
A Forty‑Year Model Nears Its End
Former Warner Communications executive Frank Carney sees the moment as the end of a long era.
“The regional sports network model we built in the nineteen eighties generated hundreds of millions of dollars and helped fuel ESPN’s national rise through the cable bundle,” Carney said. “But in 2026 that bundle no longer delivers the revenue it once did. Rights deals built on those old economics are now impossible to sustain, and that is why so many regional networks are fighting to survive.”
Some RSNs Remain Strong
Not every RSN is in danger. Team‑owned networks remain stable and insulated from the collapse.
“The team‑owned RSNs aren’t in danger. They stay strong because the teams control the product,” said sports media consultant Bill Jensen.
A Decision That Will Shape the Future
The regions at risk stretch across the country. Midwest fans could lose long standing outlets in Detroit, Milwaukee, Cleveland, Ohio, and Minneapolis. Southern markets like Miami, Atlanta, and Tampa Bay face the same uncertainty. Western markets in Los Angeles and San Antonio also hang in the balance.
These networks carry teams that anchor local identity and regional pride, and their disappearance would leave major gaps in the media landscape.
The next few weeks will determine whether DAZN rescues the networks or whether the leagues reclaim local rights. Either outcome will change how millions of fans watch their hometown teams. The regional sports model that dominated for forty years now stands at its final hour, and the industry is preparing for a future that will look very different from its past.
