Observed Signal · Mar 4, 2026 · Partnership · Source: State of Streaming · Impact: 3/5 · Sentiment: Positive
MLB Expands Global TikTok Content Partnership
Major League Baseball and TikTok have expanded a multi-year global content partnership to boost engagement with younger, international fans by increasing exclusive content and encouraging players to create on-platform. The deal leverages TikTok’s GamePlan suite as a central hub for game updates, highlights and behind-the-scenes material. MLB reported strong recent growth on TikTok: #MLB posts rose nearly 60% in 2025, the World Series saw viewership gains of 426% in Japan and 710% in Korea, and the league has over 10 million followers across global accounts. TikTok also hosted a Spring Training lounge to coach athletes on building personal brands as creators.
This expands a major sports rights-holder’s use of a global social platform to drive fan acquisition and creator-led engagement, affecting audience distribution, creator monetization and sports marketing strategies across digital channels.
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Key Takeaways & Evidence Grounding
- Major League Baseball and TikTok expanded a multi-year global content partnership.
- Posts using the #MLB hashtag grew nearly 60% in 2025.
- World Series viewership on TikTok increased 426% in Japan and 710% in Korea.
- MLB has more than 10 million followers across its global TikTok accounts.
- The partnership uses TikTok’s GamePlan suite and included a Spring Training lounge to coach players on creator skills.
Connected Companies & Entities
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Related Market Signals & Shifts
Recent verified developments and strategic activity across this market segment.
TikTok and MLB Team Up for Global Fan Engagement
TikTok and Major League Baseball (MLB) are deepening an existing partnership ahead of the 2026 season with new content and creator initiatives. Planned moves include global expansion via TikTok GamePlan, a dedicated MLB Hub for highlights and creator perspectives, and exclusive creator access (including player-facing activations and an MLB Player House lounge during Spring Training). The partnership builds on existing integrations such as Pulse Premiere. MLB and TikTok cite strong audience momentum—posts using #MLB grew nearly 60% in 2025 and TikTok research finds 85% of fans use the app as a second-screen during live events. The efforts target markets including Europe, Japan, and Mexico and aim to deepen fan engagement and drive tune-in to live games.
MLB Boosts Fan Engagement Through Creator Partnerships
At ADWEEK House during Cannes Lions, Major League Baseball and creator network Jomboy Media discussed using creator-led storytelling and athlete authenticity to reach new, younger fans who prefer short-form social clips over full games. Panelists Courtney Hirsch (Jomboy Media), Dexter Fowler (former MLB All-Star, co-founder of 400 Ventures) and EJ Aguado (MLB VP, player engagement and celebrity relations) described MLB’s partnership with Jomboy Media and league efforts to help players become creators. The panel highlighted the “Jomboy phenomenon” (lip‑reading videos), and MLB’s Café con Lindor social series — a four-episode show with Francisco Lindor — which generated roughly 35 million social views, illustrating the scale and potential of digital-first fan touchpoints.
TikTok Streams Boxing, Partners with NBA/WNBA Globally
TikTok expanded its live-sports strategy with two major moves: Most Valuable Promotions (MVP) will stream Amanda Serrano’s championship fight on TikTok LIVE — the first championship boxing event ever on the platform — and TikTok signed a multi-year global content and advertising partnership with the NBA and WNBA. The NBA/WNBA deal leverages TikTok products such as TikTok GamePlan and TikTok Pulse Premiere to surface highlights, creator access, and live-game discovery; the leagues reported rising engagement on TikTok and combined account reach of about 30 million followers. These actions follow TikTok’s recent deal to continue operating in the U.S. under a majority American-owned joint venture and mark an acceleration of its push into premium live sports content and younger audiences.
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