Fox Sports will once again serve as the television and streaming home for the 2026 World Baseball Classic in the United States. The broadcaster has secured rights to the tournament for the second consecutive cycle, following a successful debut in 2023 that delivered one of the most memorable championship moments in recent baseball history.
The network will air seven games on its main broadcast channel, including three pool games featuring Team USA, two quarterfinal matchups, and the championship game, which will take place on March 17, 2026, at loanDepot Park in Miami. The remaining games will be distributed across FS1, FS2, the Fox Sports app, Fox One, and Tubi. Spanish-language coverage will be available on Fox Deportes, which will air 28 games in total, including all four quarterfinals, both semifinals, and the final.
Fox’s 2023 WBC coverage averaged 5.2 million viewers in the U.S. for the title game between Japan and the United States, peaking at 6.5 million viewers as Shohei Ohtani struck out teammate Mike Trout to secure the win for Japan. That moment, and the tournament overall, significantly elevated the WBC’s profile in the U.S. and abroad. The 2026 event builds on that momentum, with the tournament set to be played across four global sites: Tokyo, San Juan, Houston, and Miami.
The return of the WBC to Fox reinforces the broadcaster’s long-term relationship with Major League Baseball, just ahead of its 30th season covering MLB games. It also reflects Fox’s continued emphasis on using live sports to drive engagement across both its linear channels and digital platforms. With streaming availability on both Tubi and Fox One, the WBC becomes another example of how Fox is leveraging marquee sports events to bolster its digital distribution strategy.
From MLB’s perspective, the WBC remains a key initiative to globalize the sport. Netflix picked up Japan rights for the 2026 tournament earlier this year, after the 2023 edition pulled Super Bowl-level numbers there. With 20 teams participating across four pools and first pitch set for March 4, 2026 (U.S. time), the WBC is positioned to grow its footprint even further.
The World Baseball Classic is sanctioned by the World Baseball Softball Confederation and jointly operated by MLB and the MLB Players Association through World Baseball Classic, Inc. According to executives from both MLB and Fox, the renewed partnership is not just about rights, but about amplifying the tournament’s reach and continuing to build baseball’s identity as a truly global sport.
