Leading Brands in US Sports Entertainment: Q1 2025 Analysis

Introduction

In the dynamic world of sports entertainment, leading brands such as ESPN, MLB Advanced Media, L.P., and NFL Enterprises LLC have emerged as dominant forces in the US market. This article delves into their performance from Q4 2024 to Q1 2025, focusing on audience trends, app engagement, and advertising strategies. Sensor Tower's comprehensive data provides unique insights into these brands' cross-platform success.

ESPN

Digital Presence: ESPN's digital ecosystem includes espn.com and the ESPN: Live Sports & Scores app.

• Audience Trends: ESPN maintained a strong monthly deduplicated audience consistently above 78M from October 2024 to March 2025. Web users remained dominant, particularly in March 2025, where web-only visitors surpassed 52M.

• App Engagement: The app's monthly active users fluctuated but remained around 9M, indicating stable user engagement.

• Ad Spend & Channels: ESPN's monthly advertising spend peaked in January 2025 at over $18M, with significant impressions on Facebook and Instagram. OTT channels also played a notable role, delivering substantial impressions.

MLB Advanced Media, L.P.

Digital Presence: MLB Advanced Media operates multiple platforms, including mlb.com, milb.com, milbstore.com, mlbshop.com, and tickets.com. Additionally, the MLB app enhances mobile engagement.

• Audience Trends: MLB.com saw a significant surge in March 2025, with visits exceeding 140M. Across platforms, web audiences remained larger than app users.

• App Engagement: The MLB app experienced a remarkable increase in monthly active users, reaching over 1.8M in March 2025, highlighting a growing mobile audience.

• Ad Spend & Channels: Advertising efforts intensified in March 2025, with monthly spend surpassing $5M. Facebook and Instagram were key channels, delivering high impressions.

NFL Enterprises LLC.

Digital Presence: NFL Enterprises manages several platforms, including nfl.com and team-specific websites like atlantafalcons.com. The NFL Network and NFL app provide additional digital engagement.

• Audience Trends: NFL.com consistently attracted a large audience, with visits peaking at over 195M in December 2024. The web platform remained the primary access point for users.

• App Engagement: The NFL app showed a decline in monthly active users, dropping to around 665K by March 2025, reflecting seasonal interest shifts.

• Ad Spend & Channels: Monthly spending was highest in October 2024, exceeding $11M. OTT channels were pivotal, delivering substantial impressions.

Conclusion

ESPN, MLB Advanced Media, and NFL Enterprises demonstrate robust digital strategies across web and app platforms. Sensor Tower's unparalleled data insights reveal critical trends in audience engagement and advertising strategies, essential for understanding the evolving landscape of sports entertainment.

Sensor Tower's offerings, including Web Insights and Pathmatics, provide a comprehensive view of cross-platform user behavior, crucial for industry leaders to stay ahead in the competitive sports entertainment market.