YouTube evolving as mainstay of how we consume sports

By Ed Desser and John Kosner 02.23.2026 Every generation has its sports TV destination. In the 1960s, the three broadcast networks held sway. Then the NFL, Fox, ESPN and, recently, Amazon got on the map. Older demos might see YouTube as “just” a video search engine, but younger fans know better. YouTube is a constantly updating selection of everything we search for and can imagine watching. Having already revolutionized TV … it’s just getting started as the next ”SportsCenter.” Over the past 21 years, young fans (and athletes) have grown up with YouTube — habituated to free, always-on access to sports videos, curated by Google’s algorithms — and been inspired to create their own. It’s essentially a customized TV network programmed just for you. No wonder YouTube has a massive 13% share of all viewing, per Nielsen Gauge — more than any other network or platform, and many of the leading programmers combined. Now with the help of AI, a mighty flywheel is at play. It may enable the ultimate: true personalization for every sports fan. Already, YouTube has the: Audience: 2 billion-plus daily users, annually consuming 40 billion sports content hours. Its audience is global and young. Creators: Thousands
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