Growing Popularity of Live Events on Streaming Platforms
Vanessa Obioha
From sports to music, streaming platforms are increasingly adding live events to their content slate, aiming to capture more diverse audiences. This shift has been fueled by the realization that live events, particularly sports and concerts, can drive higher engagement and attract advertisers.
Netflix’s investment in live sports became evident last year. From the heavily advertised boxing duel between veteran boxer Mike Tyson and social media influencer-turned-fighter Jake Paul to its Christmas Day NFL matches, which featured a halftime performance by global superstar Beyoncé, the platform has expanded its live event repertoire. Its efforts continue into 2025, as seen with Netflix’s $5 billion bet on streaming live WWE Raw, drawing over 17,000 WWE fans to the Intuit Dome in California for its premiere on January 6. The move into live sports broadcasting is seen by analysts as part of Netflix’s strategy to gain more subscribers in an increasingly streaming market.
The introduction of live sports is a notable shift for Netflix, which historically avoided live programming. David Murray, a sports rights consultant, told The New York Times last year that Netflix’s turn toward live sports is driven by the need to attract new audiences.
“Netflix started out doing no sport, then they started doing sports documentaries like Drive To Survive, but there’s an underlying trend where subscriber numbers are not going up. Where live sport can be really valuable is providing regular content that people want to watch. Sport delivers audiences, it delivers uncertainty, so it makes a huge amount of sense — but it means shifting their business models quite dramatically and the sums involved are potentially quite huge.”
An example of Netflix’s success in sports came from the documentary series ‘Drive to Survive,’ which not only revitalized interest in Formula 1 but also brought a significant boost to the sport’s fan base globally, especially in the U.S. A Nielsen report found that ‘Drive to Survive’ led to more than 360,000 new F1 fans in the months before the Miami Grand Prix in 2021. This success may have emboldened Netflix to dive deeper into live sports broadcasting.
But Netflix isn’t alone in this race. Other streaming platforms like Amazon Prime Video, Disney+, and Apple TV+ have also been expanding into live events. Amazon, for instance, holds exclusive rights to Thursday Night Football, which brought in a record number of subscribers and viewership in its debut. The integration of sports and live music events is becoming a key strategy for many streamers to expand their reach and keep users engaged for longer periods.
In Nigeria, MultiChoice dominates live sports broadcasting, and its video streaming platform, Showmax, has also entered the arena by adding live sports to its content offerings. Recently, Showmax streamed the homecoming concert of South African music sensation Tyla, marking its debut live-streamed entertainment event.
“With our advanced live-streaming technology, we’re thrilled to spotlight Tyla’s iconic homecoming concert. This marks our first live-streamed entertainment event, underscoring our commitment to making world-class experiences accessible across the continent,” said Yatish Narsi, Chief Marketing Officer at Showmax and MultiChoice South Africa.
Narsi expressed optimism that the concert would not only smash records but also change the narrative of what success means on the continent and place Showmax among the best in the world.
Showmax’s move toward live-streamed concerts signals the platform’s ambitions beyond sports. While the platform remains primarily focused on live sports like the Premier League through its DStv brand, the concert demonstrated how Showmax is diversifying to attract non-sports viewers.
However, it remains unclear whether live events will become a consistent part of Showmax’s offerings and if it will focus on music concerts, sports, or both.
“We’re always looking at ways to enhance or improve the Showmax experience. While there are no specific plans for additional live entertainment events to share yet, watch this space,” the streamer told THISDAY when asked about its future live-streaming plans.
Despite these forays into live events, streaming platforms still face the challenge of generating sustainable revenue. The traditional subscription-only model has proven insufficient for many, leading companies like Netflix, which once opposed advertising, to embrace ad-supported plans. Although it has yet to introduce advertising to the Nigerian market, reports suggest that the introduction of advertising in ad-supported countries is paying off, with Netflix reporting impressive numbers during its second anniversary of the ads business.
“We’re excited to now reach 70 million monthly active users globally and continue to see steady progress across all countries’ member bases. Now, over 50% of new Netflix sign-ups are for the ads plan in ad-supported countries,” the company announced last year.
As live events continue to grow in prominence, streaming platforms see them as an opportunity to attract advertisers and increase their subscription bases. The appeal is obvious — live events foster real-time engagement and cannot be easily replicated or pirated, thereby providing a unique value proposition.
