Comcast has largely remained undefeated in its conquest to move regional sports networks from its basic cable tiers more premium and expensive tiers. But one strategy, at least temporarily, recently kept one regional sports network on Comcast’s basic tier.
Just last month, Comcast and YES Network agreed to a medium-term extension that will keep the New York-area network on Xfinity’s expanded basic cable offering through at least the end of the current baseball season. The reason? YES Network was able to flex its political connections.
Per reporting from Puck’s John Ourand, New York Yankees president Randy Levine leveraged his cozy relationship with the Trump administration to coerce Comcast into keeping YES Network on the air under the same terms of its current deal. Throughout last month’s carriage battle, it was clear that FCC chair Brendan Carr was taking a keen interest in negotiations.
I’m aware that the YES Network could soon get dropped from Comcast systems.
I would encourage a quick and favorable resolution for the benefit of everyone.
The FCC does have authority to step in and address claims of discriminatory conduct. pic.twitter.com/QtuqS5fGTp
— Brendan Carr (@BrendanCarrFCC) March 30, 2025
In his short time leading the FCC, Carr has already opened inquiries into ABC, CBS, and Comcast-owned NBC News. The current administration has not been shy about litigating its grievances about perceived unfavorable media coverage through the courts.
Comcast, knowing it has bigger fish to fry than the tiering of one single regional sports network, opted to kick the can down the road, avoiding a greater conflict with YES Network and, by proxy, the Trump administration. It’s notable that Levine publicly thanked Trump after YES and Comcast agreed to an extension.
Unfortunately for Comcast, it seems like another regional sports network is trying to replicate YES’s playbook.
On Thursday, Carr posted on social media that he had met with Chicago White Sox and Chicago Bulls owner Jerry Reinsdorf, who owns the Chicago-area Chicago Sports Network (CHSN).
Appreciated the chance to visit with Chicago White Sox and Chicago Bulls owner Jerry Reinsdorf today.
Enjoyed the discussion! pic.twitter.com/ahC3bw0XYk
— Brendan Carr (@BrendanCarrFCC) April 10, 2025
Since its launch last year, CHSN, which broadcasts the White Sox, Bulls, and Blackhawks, has been unable to reach a carriage agreement with Comcast, leaving the network dark for many in the region. The dispute, of course, is over where CHSN is tiered on Comcast’s cable systems.
Pretty clearly, it looks like Reinsdorf is trying to lobby Carr to put similar public pressure on Comcast to reach a deal with CHSN, just as he did with YES Network. The key difference here, however, is that CHSN doesn’t have a current deal with Comcast in place. In fact, the network has never been carried on Comcast to begin with, so there’s no previous deal to fall back on like in YES Network’s case.
But if Carr takes an interest in CHSN’s case, as he did with YES Network, it’ll be interesting to see if Comcast’s calculus remains the same. Would it be worth striking a poor deal with CHSN to avoid the ire of the Trump administration?
Time will tell. But this will certainly test the limits of how much Comcast is willing to bend the knee to political pressure.
