Main Street Sports Group, the operator of regional sports networks known as FanDuel Sports Network, will officially cease operations in mid-to-late April 2026, the company confirmed to the Sports Business Journal. The company, which had been struggling financially for years following its emergence from bankruptcy under its previous identity as Diamond Sports Group, saw its lenders finalize paperwork on April 2 to dissolve the business. Broadcasting will continue only through the conclusion of the current NBA regular season on April 12 and the first round of the NHL playoffs, which is expected to wrap up by late April or possibly early May. This comes after months of reporting that the network would shut down in April, but now it is confirmed.
In a statement to Cord Cutters News, a Main Street Sports Group spokesperson said, “FanDuel Sports Network has reached agreements with the NBA and NHL to broadcast games and other programming through the end of the 2026 NBA regular season and the end of the first round of the NHL playoffs. We are preparing to wind down our operations upon seasons’ end unless we reach a strategic transaction. We’re pleased to finish out the NBA and NHL seasons, and we appreciate the collaborative relationships we have enjoyed with our team and league partners as well as the connections we have fostered with local fans.”
This shutdown directly affects 13 NBA teams and seven NHL franchises that had relied on Main Street for their local game broadcasts. The impacted NBA clubs include the Atlanta Hawks, Charlotte Hornets, Cleveland Cavaliers, Detroit Pistons, Indiana Pacers, Los Angeles Clippers, Memphis Grizzlies, Miami Heat, Milwaukee Bucks, Minnesota Timberwolves, Oklahoma City Thunder, Orlando Magic, and San Antonio Spurs. On the NHL side, the list encompasses the Carolina Hurricanes, Columbus Blue Jackets, Detroit Red Wings, Los Angeles Kings, Minnesota Wild, Nashville Predators, and St. Louis Blues. Many staff members at the network have already departed, with others remaining briefly to collect retainer bonuses through mid-April and a minimal crew expected to handle final operations until around May 15.
The development accelerates a broader transformation in how professional sports teams distribute their games to local fans. On April 1, the NBA notified its 13 affected teams that they could immediately begin negotiating new in-market television and streaming agreements for the 2026-27 season. This creates an open market for local rights, with teams exploring a range of options. Some may partner with traditional over-the-air stations, while others could launch or expand in-house networks, similar to the Cavaliers’ existing Rock Entertainment Sports Network. The league has encouraged shorter-term arrangements, such as one-year deals or contracts with straightforward exit provisions, to provide flexibility in case a centralized national streaming solution for regional games materializes sooner than anticipated.
For the upcoming season, several teams appear poised to test streaming-only models, which would represent a notable shift for NBA broadcasts. Platforms like DAZN and Victory+ have emerged as potential partners, offering alternatives to conventional linear television. Victory+ operates on an ad-supported basis with free streaming and occasional over-the-air simulcasts for select games, sharing revenue with teams after recouping guarantees. DAZN, in contrast, typically involves subscription access alongside some free local broadcasts for promotional reach. Rights fees in linear deals are projected to fall below 10 million dollars annually in many cases, reflecting the challenging economics facing regional sports networks. Technology providers such as ViewLift and Kiswe could also assist teams in building direct-to-consumer platforms, drawing from models already in use by other franchises.
Financial relief may come for the NBA teams in the form of partial rebates on unpaid 2026 rights fees. Main Street had not disbursed any payments for the year, leaving teams in a difficult position. However, the NBA indicated that once dissolution agreements are completed, clubs could recover up to 60 percent of those amounts according to a creditor-based formula. Teams are also monitoring the league’s potential development of a national streaming hub for local broadcasts, which could bundle games across markets and reduce reliance on individual regional deals. While discussions have occurred about launching such a platform as early as 2026-27, many expect it to debut no sooner than 2027-28. Interested operators include DAZN, YouTube TV, Amazon, and ESPN, with some speculation around thresholds like 20 or more teams participating to make the service viable.
The affected NBA teams join several others that had already left traditional regional sports networks, including the Phoenix Suns, Utah Jazz, Dallas Mavericks, Portland Trail Blazers, and New Orleans Pelicans. Together with potential additions from markets currently served by NBC-affiliated networks, this group could form the core of a future centralized streaming offering. In the NHL, similar streaming experiments have taken hold with teams like the Dallas Stars and Anaheim Ducks using Victory+, and there is potential for integration with WNBA broadcasts in shared markets, such as pairing Minnesota Timberwolves and Lynx games.
Main Street Sports Group had explored a sale, including extended discussions with DAZN, while leveraging its distribution agreements with major carriers like DirecTV, Charter, and Comcast. No transaction materialized, and the company had prepared to conclude operations at season’s end absent a last-minute deal. The wind-down reflects ongoing pressures in the regional sports network sector, driven by cord-cutting, rising production costs, and the migration toward digital platforms. For fans, the changes could mean greater flexibility in how they access games, though the transition period may involve adjustments in availability and pricing.
As teams navigate short-term solutions for 2026-27, the industry edges closer to a more consolidated, streaming-centric model for local content. The 13 NBA clubs and their NHL counterparts now hold the opportunity to shape their broadcast futures in a competitive environment, potentially pioneering new approaches that could influence the broader sports media ecosystem in the years ahead. The full implications will unfold over the coming months as negotiations progress and platforms position themselves for a larger role in delivering live sports to regional audiences.
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