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The St. Louis Cardinals have announced they will continue with FanDuel Sports Network for their television distribution and the new agreement will include a direct-to-consumer offering. The two agreed to a new multi-year agreement to have the games aired on FanDuel Sports Network Midwest, formerly Bally Sports Midwest. The Diamond Sports Group owned outlet had said it would only continue to carry games if they could renegotiate agreements with teams.
The Cardinals were one of the teams in limbo deciding between staying with DSG or partnering with Major League Baseball. So far, six teams have decided to work with MLB, which includes the Arizona Diamondbacks, Milwaukee Brewers, Cleveland Guardians, Minnesota Twins, Colorado Rockies and San Diego Padres.
The Cardinals are now one of eight teams that will be working with FanDuel Sports Network for 2025. The others are the Atlanta Braves, Cincinnati Reds, Detroit Tigers, Kansas City Royals, Los Angeles Angels, Miami Marlins and Tampa Bay Rays.
The Cardinals still do well on local television when the team is winning. However, between all the cord cutting and the team having two dismal seasons, the audience is down almost 50% from two season ago. The rating for the 2022 season was 7.3. That number dropped to 5.2 during a season that saw the team go 71-91 two years ago. This year, while the total wins improved to 83, the team was mostly out of contention the last few months of the season and the attendance and interest went way down. The rating for the 2024 season was 3.9.
Usual television rating numbers for the team are in the 7’s at the low end or 9’s at the high end for a season average. Since 2000, the team peaked at a 10.0 rating in 2015. The team finished seventh in overall attendance in Major League Baseball this season, which is the lowest it has been since 2004.
According to a report in the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, the Cardinals were set to receive $78 million next year in broadcasting rights fees but was expected to see that drop by 20% or more. Details on the direct-to-consumer offering were not immediately available.
