Serie A and CBS extend US rights deal until 2026-27

Serie A and CBS Sports have exercised an option to extend their US media rights agreement by one year, keeping Italy’s top division on Paramount+ through the 2026–27 season.The rollover matters because it gives CBS schedule certainty and protects Serie A’s US distribution while the league positions itself for a bigger reset after the FIFA World Cup 2026, when interest in football is expected to spike in the United States.The package covers 420 English-language matches, largely streamed on Paramount+, including all Serie A fixtures, at least 20 Coppa Italia matches and every Supercoppa Italiana match.The extension follows Serie A’s decision to test the market rather than lock into a longer-term cycle immediately, with both sides choosing to maintain the existing structure for an extra year.Serie A originally moved its US rights from ESPN to CBS ahead of the 2021–22 season, landing a premium price during the peak of the streaming land-grab for football inventory.That pricing environment softened by the time the league renewed with CBS in 2024, and the one-year option effectively keeps the current economics in place while the market continues to recalibrate.From CBS’s perspective, Serie A remains a valuable volume property that feeds consistent live programming into Paramount+ while adding cup competitions that can be scheduled as tentpoles across the season.From Serie A’s perspective, the decision avoids locking into long-term pricing before the US football market reaches its next inflection point, with the league aiming to return to market after the 2026 tournament to capture any uplift in demand.Serie A’s US profile continues to be helped by the presence of American players at major clubs, which provides marketing hooks for both broadcaster and league even when viewing habits are increasingly platform-led rather than channel-led.The agreement also arrives as Spanish-language positioning in the US market remains in flux for several European properties, increasing the value of stable English-language distribution for rights holders seeking predictable reach and brand continuity.