Hoop heads that don’t currently subscribe to the Amazon Prime Video streaming service may need to reevaluate their streaming spending as Amazon Prime Video and the NBA have agreed on an 11-year media rights distribution deal beginning with the 2025-2026 season.

According to Amazon, Prime Video will be the first exclusive streaming partner of the NBA and present global coverage for 66 regular-season NBA games, including an opening-week doubleheader, a new Black Friday NBA game, and all games from the Knockout Rounds of the Emirates NBA Cup, including the in-season tournament’s Semifinals and Finals.

Prime Video also acquired the rights to exclusive coverage of every game of the Play-in Tournament, the first- and second-round playoff games, and Conference Finals in six of the 11 years of the deal.

According to Amazon, Prime Video will distribute its sports streaming package in the U.S. and internationally, with an expanded package of games in Mexico, Brazil, France, Italy, Spain Germany, the U.K., and Ireland. This will include at least 20 regular season primetime games each year, a Conference Finals series each year, and the NBA Finals in six years of the deal.

Prime Video Channels will also be a partner and third-party global channels store destination for NBA League Pass, the NBA’s subscription services for live and on-demand games.

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Prime Video’s NBA coverage will begin in Fall 2025 with an opening week doubleheader. Coverage will include Friday night games, some Saturday afternoon games, and Thursday night doubleheaders starting in January 2026 once the NFL season and Prime Video’s coverage of Thursday Night Football ends.

Prime Video will present live NBA pregame, postgame, and halftime shows as part of its coverage. It is not yet known which NBA personalities or analysts will be a part of those productions.

The service will also stream half of all NBA Summer League games and a package of WNBA and NBA G League games.

Prime Video has also announced a new 11-year agreement with the WNBA, beginning in 2026, which includes exclusive streaming rights to 30 regular-season games a year, including the Championship Game of the WNBA Commissioner’s Cup. Prime Video will also include select postseason games over the course of the 11-year deal.

Prime Video Channels will also be the global channels store destination for WNBA League Pass, the WNBA’s subscription service for streaming live and on-demand games.

Live Sports Streaming Continues to Gather Momentum

This deal comes as the NBA ended its deal with TNT, with other games being shifted to NBC. ESPN will also still show some NBA games. It’s also a sign of the times, with sports leagues partnering with streaming services at an increasing rate, forcing cable TV subscribers to cut the cord.

This makes the sports streaming landscape even more complicated. Amazon has been the home for the NFL’s Thursday Night Football for several years, and now adds the highest level of basketball in the world to its offerings. Other sports on the streaming services include the WNBA, NASCAR, NWSL in the U.S., the NHL in Canada, UEFA Champions League soccer in the UK, Germany, and Italy, Premier League soccer in the UK and Sweden, Roland Garros tennis in France, and Wimbledon in Germany and Austria.

In addition to Amazon, Max, Netflix, Peacock, Paramount+, Disney+, ESPN+ and a host of other streaming services have either announced live sports offerings or already offer live sports streaming.

In a statemet, NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said the digital opportunties with Amazon align with the NBA’s popularity internationally.

“And Prime Video’s massive subscriber base will dramatically expand our ability to reach our fans in new and innovative ways,” SIlver said.

Amazon Prime Video executives are bullish on the sports streaming landscape, calling sports streaming a key part of Prime Video’s offerings and continued success.

“When combined with our original films and shows; partner streaming services; licensed content; and rent or buy titles—our sports offering is a major driver of Prime Video’s evolution into a genuine one-stop shop for everything our customers want in video,” said Mike Hopkins, head of Prime Video and Amazon MGM Studios.

“We are proud to be the first exclusive streaming partner for the NBA, bringing Prime members across the globe one of the most exciting and most popular sports in the world. With 66 regular-season games, the NBA Cup, the Play-In Tournament, more than 20 playoff games every year, and NBA League Pass, we’re giving basketball fans around the world more ways than ever to watch the action,” said Jay Marine, global head of Sports, Prime Video.

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