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Afternoon Edition

October 30, 2025

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Comcast is hitting the brakes on speculation that it might acquire Warner Bros. Discovery. The NBC Sports parent company says its current strategy is strong enough that any merger would need to meet a “very high” bar.

— Eric Fisher [[link removed]], Alex Schiffer [[link removed]], Colin Salao [[link removed]], and David Rumsey [[link removed]]

NBC Sports Parent Says No Rush to Make WBD Deal: ‘Bar Is Very High’ [[link removed]]

Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images

NBC Sports parent company Comcast has become the latest media giant to have a reserved public stance on potentially acquiring Warner Bros. Discovery, saying “the bar is very high” for any merger-related activity.

Following similar comments from Netflix last week [[link removed]], Comcast said early Thursday in an earnings call that its current corporate strategy remains solid, and it doesn’t necessarily require a deal for WBD, the parent company of TNT Sports.

“The bar is very high for us to pursue any [merger-and-acquisition] transactions given how strongly we feel about the businesses we have, the strategies we’re pursuing, and opportunities we have ahead of us, so that continues to be an important anchor point for how we think about things,” said Comcast co-CEO Mike Cavanagh. “You should expect us to look at things that are trading in our space, around our industry. It’s our job to try to figure out if there’s ways to add value.”

WBD formally put itself up for sale [[link removed]] earlier this month in the wake of multiple and unsolicited offers, and interest in at least parts of that company has reportedly come from CBS Sports parent company Paramount, as well as Comcast and Netflix.

Comcast, however, continues to march forward as it is, and particularly lauded the beginning of its NBA coverage earlier this month.

“I think the strategies we have are really sound and durable without M&A,” Cavanagh said.

Broader Results

Comcast, meanwhile, said revenue and net income both fell in the third quarter, with bullish results last year from the Paris Olympics [[link removed]] providing a tougher comparison for the company.

Revenue during the quarter fell 2.7% to $31.2 billion, while net income dropped 8.2% to $3.3 billion. The company also continued to see subscriber drops in its core broadband and cable businesses.

Excluding the bump from Paris last year, Comcast said its media revenue increased 4.2% in the current quarter.

The dynamic reflects the double-edged sword that major sports events such as the Olympics represent for Comcast. These tentpole events and leagues, like the NFL and NBA, are critical for the entire company and provide much of the most-watched content that Comcast has. The seasonal and periodic nature of those events, however, creates earnings-related issues such as this latest one, and Comcast stock fell more than 4% in Thursday trading.

That all said, February 2026 promises to be a historic period for the company [[link removed]] with the Winter Olympics in Italy, Super Bowl LX, and the NBA All-Star Game all happening on NBC Sports in a matter of days. Along those lines, Cavanagh reiterated in an earnings call Thursday that “sports remains a cornerstone of our media business,” and fueled a record upfront sales period in the spring.

Peacock, however, remains flat at 41 million subscribers, showing the uphill climb it still has against much larger general-entertainment competitors in the streaming space.

“Peacock subs have been flat for three straight quarters, and it is still losing more than $900 million per year. Time is of the essence to merge Peacock and HBO Max,” tweeted [[link removed]] LightShed Partners analyst Rich Greenfield.

SPONSORED BY TNT SPORTS

TNT Sports and Bleacher Report Level Up

The media-rights shake-up in college sports just got bigger. TNT Sports [[link removed]] is stepping beyond its traditional hoops and playoff lanes, teaming up with Bleacher Report to grab deeper access into the Power 4 college football and basketball ecosystem.

With the network already locked into first-round slots of the College Football Playoff via a sublicense deal with ESPN, the B/R partnership brings a younger, social-native audience into the mix and signals a full-fledged pivot toward campus sports as prime streaming real estate.

For athletic departments, conference commissioners, and advertisers, the message is clear: The broadcast table is expanding fast, and the next wave of eyeballs isn’t headed exclusively to linear TV.

Check out the full article here. [[link removed]]

NBA Approves Mark Walter As New Lakers Owner [[link removed]]

Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Mark Walter now owns Los Angeles’s two biggest sports franchises.

On Oct. 30, the CEO of Guggenheim Partners, who also owns the Dodgers, was approved by the NBA’s Board of Governors [[link removed]] to be the new owner of the Lakers. Walter was already a minority owner in the team with a 27% stake, which he purchased in 2021, and in June, agreed to purchase the franchise from the Buss family at a $10 billion valuation [[link removed]], a record for an American sports franchise, and topped the rival Celtics’ valuation of $6.1 billion [[link removed]].

Because of his previous stake in the team, Walter had to pay only around $6 billion to get the majority share, which came in one transaction instead of multiple, breaking a recent NBA trend that includes the Celtics and Trail Blazers’ deals [[link removed]]. Also involved in the deal is Walter’s longtime business partner Todd Boehly [[link removed]], who is a co-owner of the Dodgers and went in on the 2021 transaction for a 27% Lakers stake.

Together, Walter and Boehly now own 85% of the Lakers, although their exact stakes are unclear. Walter is the majority owner, and Boehly will be a limited partner. The deal cedes control of one of the NBA’s successful franchises to Walter after being run by the Buss family for nearly 50 years.

Jeanie Buss will retain a 15% stake in the franchise, which is the minimum required to serve as team governor, a position she will continue to hold for “at least five years,” the NBA said in its release. Team governors typically represent their teams at Board of Governors meetings. Her father, Jerry Buss, bought the Lakers, Kings, and Los Angeles Forum for $67.5 million in 1979. Jeanie became the face of Lakers ownership after her father died in 2013.

Aside from the Lakers and Dodgers, Walter also has stakes in Chelsea of the English Premier League and the WNBA’s Sparks. He is also the primary financial backer of the PWHL.

Walter takes over the Lakers during a transition period as the team shifts its priorities to building around Luka Dončić [[link removed]] while LeBron James is in the twilight of his career. The Lakers have won 17 championships in their history, which is the second most in the NBA behind the Celtics’ 18. The Lakers won their most recent NBA title in 2020, but they haven’t made the Finals since.

Walter brings extreme wealth to an organization that lacked outside capital over the years, as the Buss family’s wealth stemmed from owning the team. Walter has a net worth of $7.3 billion [[link removed]], according to Forbes, and has turned the Dodgers into baseball’s premier organization [[link removed]] in his 13 years as owner (they are currently down 3–2 in the World Series against the Blue Jays—Game 6 is Friday in Toronto). Now he’ll try to do the same thing on the other side of town.

NBA Season Opens With Best Ratings in 8 Years Despite Off-Court Scandals [[link removed]]

Kevin Jairaj-Imagn Images

The NBA has been in hot water to start the 2025–26 season, following gambling-related arrests [[link removed]] of three current and former NBA players and allegations of salary-cap circumvention by the Clippers [[link removed]].

But that hasn’t deterred fans from watching games through the league’s first week, combating an issue that plagued it through most of last season [[link removed]].

The NBA drew 2.8 million viewers through the first week of the season on national games (NBC, Peacock, ESPN, and Amazon Prime Video), the league’s most-watched opening week in eight years, according to Nielsen’s new Big Data + Panel measurement process, which has boosted viewership numbers across all sports. The addition of Adobe Analytics data for NBC games also changes the calculus, as past data considered only Nielsen’s panel data.

The games are the first under the NBA’s new 11-year, $77 billion media deal [[link removed]].

The viewership numbers were fueled by the opening-night doubleheader on Oct. 21, the NBA’s first games on NBC since 2002, which drew 5.6 million viewers [[link removed]] (including Peacock), up 90% vs. last year’s opening-night games on TNT.

Prime Video also streamed its first NBA games Friday, drawing 1.25 million viewers, up 13% compared to the same games last year, which aired on ESPN. The year-over-year growth bolsters the case for streaming against cable channels.

It’s important to note, however, that the early game (Knicks vs. Celtics) drove most of the growth, up 41% compared to last year’s game (Knicks vs. Pacers). While both games aired simultaneously with the World Series, last year’s series featured the Yankees, therefore cannibalizing the New York market.

ESPN, the lone incumbent in the NBA’s new deal, still showed strong numbers, averaging 2.2 million viewers across four games, its second-most-watched opening week since 2014. Only 2023 drew more viewers, driven by the NBA debut of Victor Wembanyama [[link removed]].

Social media numbers have shown the league’s continued growth, as the league drew more than 2.1 billion views on its social platforms, the most for any opening week.

FRONT OFFICE SPORTS TODAY Governor: LSU Athletic Director Won’t Pick Next Coach

FOS illustration

Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry says LSU athletic director Scott Woodward won’t be picking the successor for football coach Brian Kelly, and that he’d let “Donald Trump select it before I let [Woodward] do it.” FOS college sports reporter Amanda Christovich explains why the state governor is so involved in this process and what it means for Woodward’s future.

Speaking of LSU, former Tigers star Angel Reese is trademarking her own name, a sign of her growing brand power—a trend for numerous WNBA players across the league, says FOS reporter Annie Costabile. It coincides with collective bargaining negotiations, which is especially telling after commissioner Cathy Engelbert allegedly said players like Caitlin Clark should be “grateful” for the platform the league provides them.

Also, the World Series heads back to Toronto for the most expensive Canadian sports event in history, Pacquiao vs. Mayweather could happen again, and Jaylen Brown calls LeBron James for advice on saving his hairline.

Watch the full episode here. [[link removed]]

STATUS REPORT Two Up, One Down, One Push

Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

Trey Yesavage ⬆ The Blue Jays rookie pitcher, who earned just $57,204 in a prorated minimum salary this season following a mid-September call-up from the minor leagues, continues to astound in the postseason. The 22-year-old pitched seven innings in Wednesday’s Game 5 of the World Series, striking out 12 and allowing just one run as Toronto took a 3–2 lead, and the team can clinch its first title in 32 years Friday at Rogers Centre. Yesavage is in line for a six-figure payday as part of the MLB postseason player compensation pool [[link removed]].

Managerial youth ⬆ The Nationals have hired Blake Butera as their next manager, and at 33 years old, he will be MLB’s youngest person in that role since the Twins hired 33-year-old Frank Quilici in 1972. Butera was formerly the Rays’ senior director of player development, and the move arrives as many teams have increasingly embraced younger leaders in both the dugout and front office. The hire is the first major one for president of baseball operations Paul Toboni, himself new to the team after a club overhaul in the summer [[link removed]].

Acrisure Stadium ⬆⬇ Steelers quarterback Aaron Rodgers said [[link removed]] the field at Pittsburgh’s home stadium during Sunday’s game against the Packers “thankfully was in slightly better shape than the previous week.” Earlier this month, players from the Steelers and Browns criticized the playing surface [[link removed]] at Acrisure Stadium, which is also the home venue for Pitt’s football team.

Esports ⬇ The International Olympic Committee has ended its 12-year deal [[link removed]] to host the Esports Olympics in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, just 15 months after announcing the pact. Plans for the inaugural competition had already been postponed from this year to 2027.

Editors’ Picks Rose Bowl Lawsuit Claims UCLA Tried to Move Games to SoFi Stadium [[link removed]]by Amanda Christovich [[link removed]]UCLA has called the Rose Bowl home since the early 1980s. Like NFL, NBA Is Doubling Down on Cosm’s ‘Mini-Sphere’ Venues [[link removed]]by Eric Fisher [[link removed]]League games will continue to be shown at the immersive venues. ESPN Says No Issues With Its Handling of NBA Gambling Scandal [[link removed]]by Michael McCarthy [[link removed]]Viewership for every ESPN studio show was “up significantly.” DAILY TRIVIA Factle Sports

Can you rank the top 5 WNBA players by PPG scored in the 2025 postseason?

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Advertise [[link removed]] Awards [[link removed]] Learning [[link removed]] Events [[link removed]] Video [[link removed]] Show [[link removed]] Written by Eric Fisher [[link removed]], Alex Schiffer [[link removed]], Colin Salao [[link removed]], David Rumsey [[link removed]] Edited by Matthew Tabeek [[link removed]], Catherine Chen [[link removed]]

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