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Antenna’s Q4’25 State of Subscriptions Report on Sports & Streaming is set for release next week. A key component of that report will be a look at the impact of the launches of direct-to-consumer (DTC) services by ESPN and FOX. Both services feature marquee live sports programming that was previously largely exclusive to linear broadcast audiences. 

All streaming services have deep knowledge of what happens on their platform and use this intelligence to inform a variety of programming and UX strategies with the goal of keeping viewers engaged and subscribed. But when it comes to understanding what various subscriber cohorts are watching on other platforms, these same services are largely flying blind.

Antenna evaluates retention by identifying subscribers who view a specific title in a given month and measuring how many remain subscribed at the end of the following month (M+1 retention). We then compare that to the service’s retention benchmark, which is the percentage of all active viewers on a service in a given month who remained subscribed at the end of the following month.

Last month, Antenna shared a look at some preliminary data for the first 10 days of ESPN and FOX One’s streaming services, both of which launched on August 21, 2025. With the 2025/2026 NFL regular season fully underway, we’re checking in again to see how the services performed during their first full month in market.

It’s no longer enough to know how many people watched a show. You need to know which shows draw new viewers, which shows keep them with you, and what else they're watching that might lure them away. You need to understand the lift that programming creates and its influence on subscriber actions.

The sports media landscape has long been intertwined with the linear television business model. However, in recent years, marquee live sports events have become available on streaming services, in addition to their linear broadcasts.