Facebook will be the exclusive streaming home of 25 MLB games this season
If Facebook's 2017 streaming deal with Major League Baseball was a home run, the coming season's new deal is an easy grand slam.
The social network has landed exclusive streaming rights for the broadcast of 25 MLB games from the coming season, starting on April 4. That means more games on Facebook this year than there were last year (25 now, vs. 20 then), but exclusivity is the key here.
In the U.S., Facebook will be the only place you can watch those games. They'll be viewable through the MLB Live Facebook portal, and will come with extras like highlight reels and team-specific recaps.
The first game, airing on April 4, will be a match-up between the New York Mets and Philadelphia Phillies. Additional games will follow on a weekly basis, with all of them airing during weekday afternoons. Facebook users outside the country will also be able to watch the games on MLB Live, but the exclusivity only applies inside the U.S.
Clearly, the social network's 2017 pact with MLB was a success. Last year, 20 games streamed in all, live on Friday nights. The 2018 deal may move out of that prime Friday slot, but making Facebook the only place to watch them is a big deal.
It's also another win to notch for the social network. Even before the 2017 deal, Facebook had already been making moves toward streaming sporting events. Professional baseball is certainly the biggest deal, but there are also streaming deals in place for Mexican soccer, American soccer, table tennis, and Crossfit.
Topics Facebook Social Media
Adam Rosenberg is a Senior Games Reporter for Mashable, where he plays all the games. Every single one. From AAA blockbusters to indie darlings to mobile favorites and browser-based oddities, he consumes as much as he can, whenever he can.Adam brings more than a decade of experience working in the space to the Mashable Games team. He previously headed up all games coverage at Digital Trends, and prior to that was a long-time, full-time freelancer, writing for a diverse lineup of outlets that includes Rolling Stone, MTV, G4, Joystiq, IGN, Official Xbox Magazine, EGM, 1UP, UGO and others.Born and raised in the beautiful suburbs of New York, Adam has spent his life in and around the city. He's a New York University graduate with a double major in Journalism and Cinema Studios. He's also a certified audio engineer. Currently, Adam resides in Crown Heights with his dog and his partner's two cats. He's a lover of fine food, adorable animals, video games, all things geeky and shiny gadgets.
