Walt Disney Co.’s Disney+ platform will stream the 2027 Super Bowl in an effort to score more viewers for what could be the most-watched US television program ever.
All Disney+ subscribers in the US will be able to stream the game, which is also being broadcast on Disney’s ESPN and ABC, according to a statement from the company Wednesday. International fans will be able to watch either on Disney+ or ESPN, depending on the market.
Two upcoming Monday Night Football games will stream on Disney+ in addition to being broadcast on ESPN and ABC.
Disney negotiated the rights to air the big game for the 2026 and 2030 seasons as part of a 10-year deal the National Football League signed with the company in 2021. ABC last aired a Super Bowl in 2006. ESPN hasn’t previously shown one. The sports network launched a new streaming service just before football season last year.
The Super Bowl typically scores massive viewership, with last year’s championship garnering 128 million viewers , the largest-ever audience for a US TV program. It aired on Fox and Tubi, Fox Corp.’s free streaming service. In this year’s matchup, which saw the Seattle Seahawks cruise to an easy victory over the New England Patriots, the audience declined 2.2% to 125 million viewers . That game was broadcast by Comcast Corp.’s NBC and Telemundo channels, and streamed on Peacock.
Next year’s championship takes place on Feb. 14. Disney has embarked on an aggressive marketing campaign for the game, including using characters from its Disney, Marvel, Star Wars and Pixar franchises to promote it. The company announced in its fiscal third-quarter financial results that ABC and ESPN had already sold out of Super Bowl commercial inventory.