Live streaming platforms like Twitch have been slowly expanding beyond gaming content. Podcasts, talk shows, and even financial news have emerged as topics of interest. Along with these new content opportunities lies the abundance of live streamed sports games. In the age of cable cutting, sites like Twitch or YouTube could be the perfect home for sports with the added benefits of reaching new, younger audiences while also leveraging live chat. This week, Stream Hatchet analyzes the growth of sports content on Twitch in 2021.
- The “Sports” category on Twitch has increased 151% from January to August this year. The inclusion of leagues like the NBA using Twitch to broadcast playoff games has substantially helped the growth.
- The NFL extended its deal with Amazon to stream all Thursday Night Football games on Twitch from 2023-2033. This will likely continue to push sports towards live streaming and raise the category’s viewership to new heights.
- Many sports leagues and even individual teams already have Twitch channels making the conversion to live streaming almost seamless. However, broadcast rights remain the biggest obstacle.
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