Detroit Tigers fans impacted by regional sports network struggles
On “Days of Roar,” The Athletic senior writer Evan Drellich details the struggles of regional sports networks – and the impact on Detroit Tigers fans.
The Detroit Tigers may be harder to find on your local cable package in 2026.
As reported by Sports Business Journal’s Tom Friend on Monday, Feb. 2, the Tigers are officially leaving Main Street Sports Group along with eight other MLB teams, meaning Tigers games will not be televised on FanDuel Sports Network Detroit in 2026. The eight teams affected are the Tigers, Cincinnati Reds, Kansas City Royals, Los Angeles Angels, Miami Marlins, Milwaukee Brewers, St. Louis Cardinals and Tampa Bay Rays.
Friend reports the Tigers are expected to move to MLB Media, meaning their broadcasting rights will be owned by the league.
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The Tigers canceled their current deal with Main Street on Jan. 8, but left the option to renegotiate with the FanDuel Sports Network parent company for the upcoming season. However, it seems like those negotiations did not lead to an agreement.
The Tigers did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Puck’s John Ourand reported earlier today that six of the nine teams breaking their agreement with Main Street have taken up MLB’s offer to move their media rights to the league, with the Braves, Tigers and Angels the three undecided teams. Neither MLB nor the Tigers have officially announced what Detroit’s broadcasting setup will look like in 2026.
Five MLB teams had their games distributed by MLB in 2025: the Cleveland Guardians, San Diego Padres, Arizona Diamondbacks, Colorado Rockies and Minnesota Twins. Two more teams, the Seattle Mariners and Washington Nationals, announced they would join MLB Media earlier in the offseason.
The only team of the nine affected not expected to move to MLB Media are the Braves, who according to Friend are expected to launch their own network.
Per a statement provided to The Athletic, this deal will not affect the remainder of the NBA’s Detroit Pistons or NHL’s Detroit Red Wings broadcasts for the 2025-26 season.
“FanDuel Sports Network is continuing to broadcast NBA and NHL games, and we appreciate the leagues’ engagement in ongoing discussions on our go-forward plans,” Main Street said.
Despite the “business-as-usual” setup between Main Street and its NBA and NHL partners, Friend reports that Main Street missed its Feb. 1 payment to those teams, including the Pistons and Red Wings. Friend also reports the Red Wings, who like the Tigers are owned by Ilitch Sports and Entertainment, are expected to move to MLB Media along with the Tigers.
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You can reach Christian at cromo@freepress.com.
