The 2025 Breeders’ Cup will be held at the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club.
Photo by Steve Heuertz.

Horse racing’s World Championship weekend is almost here: The 2025 Breeders’ Cup, running October 31st and November 1st at Del Mar Thoroughbred Club. And while the horses will be easy to find, the television coverage may not be.

This year, fans have three main ways to tune in:

FanDuel TV, which for the first time will air every live race Friday and Saturday;
Peacock, which will stream the full two-day card; and
NBC and USA Network, which will split coverage across three different channel changes Friday and five on Saturday.

If that sounds complicated, don’t worry, we will give you multiple options to hopefully cut down on your channel roulette.

THE ACCESSIBILITY ARGUMENT

When the Breeders’ Cup debuted in 1984, it was appointment television. One network carried every race, and millions tuned in — no apps, no add-ons, no juggling between channels. Back then, racing’s biggest hurdle wasn’t accessibility; it was awareness.

Fast forward forty years, and the roles have reversed. Horse racing has more content, digital reach, and broadcast partners than ever before — yet for casual fans, it’s never been harder to find the races live. As streaming splinters audiences and subscriptions pile up, accessibility has quietly become one of the sport’s biggest barriers.

We live in an on-demand world. Viewers expect convenience. If you make them chase a signal or download another app, they’ll simply move on.

Offering a temporary open window not only simplifies the experience, it also signals goodwill. It says, “We want you to watch.”

And that gesture matters. Marketing research on reciprocity consistently shows that when brands offer something free of value — like access to a premium event — consumers are far more likely to reward them with loyalty and future purchases.

THE PRICE (AND AVAILABILITY) OF ACCESS

Let’s look at what it takes to watch this year’s Breeders’ Cup:

FanDuel TV (FanDuel Sports Network): $19.99/month with a 7-day free trial for new subscribers, available in limited states.
Peacock: $10.99/month (Premium with ads) or $16.99/month (Premium Plus ad-free), no standard free trial currently offered.
NBC/USA Network: Available through most cable or live-TV streaming bundles, but subject to blackouts and limited availability for those using antenna or digital feeds.

For many casual fans, watching the sport’s biggest event now requires paying for one or more subscriptions, or spending the weekend chasing channel changes and live feeds.

That’s not exactly how you grow an audience.

And there’s another wrinkle: in states that don’t allow peer-to-peer wagering, subscribers often can’t set up a streaming account directly through FanDuel. Because wagering and streaming rights are intertwined, FanDuel’s reach isn’t yet consistent nationwide.

Fortunately, there are other options for fans who either can’t or don’t want to connect through a wagering app. Several live-TV streaming services that carry FanDuel TV, NBC and USA Network offer free trials—letting viewers tune in without long-term commitments or betting requirements:

YouTube TV — offers a free trial (varies by region/promotion)
FuboTV — offers a 5-day free trial for new subscribers
Hulu + Live TV — offers a 3-day free trial
DIRECTV Stream — often includes a limited free trial for new users

For fans in non-wagering states—or anyone hesitant to add another paid subscription—these platforms open a short-term window to watch the Breeders’ Cup without barriers. Just check local carriage for channel availability, and you’re good to go.

THE CASE FOR A TWO-DAY FREE TRIAL

Here’s the business logic: Free trials work.

Studies across digital industries show that 20–25% of people who sign up for a free trial convert to paid subscribers once they experience value firsthand. For event-driven offers — think playoffs, championship weekends, or one-time specials — that number can climb even higher.

A short, 48-hour free window on Peacock or FanDuel TV for Breeders’ Cup weekend could:

Expand accessibility — removing the paywall for casual or curious fans;
Eliminate confusion — one platform, one login, all races; and
Create new revenue — by converting trial viewers into paying subscribers after the event.

It’s a win-win: racing gets new eyes, and the networks gain new customers.

Even if just 5–10% of trial users convert, the math makes sense. If 100,000 people take advantage of a Breeders’ Cup trial, that’s 5,000–10,000 new subscribers — roughly $50,000 to $100,000 in first-month revenue at a $10/month average, not counting retention or repeat months.

Accessibility isn’t charity; it’s strategy. A small gesture on racing’s biggest stage could yield long-term gains in both audience and loyalty.

CUTTING THROUGH THE STATIC

Of course, there are practical challenges: licensing, blackouts, subscriber cannibalization. But the potential reward — new viewers, new fans, new revenue — outweighs the risk.

The Breeders’ Cup is one of racing’s greatest showcases. It deserves to be easy to watch, not hard to find.

Instead of asking fans to juggle eight channel changes or multiple subscriptions, let’s make it simple: One event. One login. Two days of the best horses in the world.

The 2025 Breeders’ Cup World Championship television schedule.

Let’s give new fans a chance to fall in love with the sport, not by making them pay to find it, but by inviting them to experience it. Because goodwill doesn’t just grow audiences, it grows racing.

Breeders’ Cup 2025: How Accessibility Drives Viewers — and Revenue

Horse racing’s World Championship weekend is almost here: The 2025 Breeders’ Cup, running October 31st and November 1st at Del Mar Thoroughbred Club. And while the horses will be easy to find, the television coverage may not be.

This year, fans have three main ways to tune in:

FanDuel TV, which for the first time will air every live race Friday and Saturday;

Peacock, which will stream the full two-day card; and

NBC and USA Network, which will split coverage across three different channel changes Friday and five on Saturday.

If that sounds complicated, don’t worry, we will give you multiple options to hopefully cut down on your channel roulette.

When the Breeders’ Cup debuted in 1984, it was appointment television. One network carried every race, and millions tuned in — no apps, no add-ons, no juggling between channels. Back then, racing’s biggest hurdle wasn’t accessibility; it was awareness.

We live in an on-demand world. Viewers expect convenience. If you make them chase a signal or download another app, they’ll simply move on.

Offering a temporary open window not only simplifies the experience, it also signals goodwill. It says, “We want you to watch.”

And that gesture matters. Marketing research on reciprocity consistently shows that when brands offer something free of value — like access to a premium event — consumers are far more likely to reward them with loyalty and future purchases.

Let’s look at what it takes to watch this year’s Breeders’ Cup:

FanDuel TV (FanDuel Sports Network): $19.99/month with a 7-day free trial for new subscribers, available in limited states.

Peacock: $10.99/month (Premium with ads) or $16.99/month (Premium Plus ad-free), no standard free trial currently offered.

NBC/USA Network: Available through most cable or live-TV streaming bundles, but subject to blackouts and limited availability for those using antenna or digital feeds.

For many casual fans, watching the sport’s biggest event now requires paying for one or more subscriptions, or spending the weekend chasing channel changes and live feeds.

That’s not exactly how you grow an audience.

And there’s another wrinkle: in states that don’t allow peer-to-peer wagering, subscribers often can’t set up a streaming account directly through FanDuel. Because wagering and streaming rights are intertwined, FanDuel’s reach isn’t yet consistent nationwide.

Fortunately, there are other options for fans who either can’t or don’t want to connect through a wagering app. Several live-TV streaming services that carry FanDuel TV, NBC and USA Network offer free trials—letting viewers tune in without long-term commitments or betting requirements:

YouTube TV — offers a free trial (varies by region/promotion)

FuboTV — offers a 5-day free trial for new subscribers

Hulu + Live TV — offers a 3-day free trial

DIRECTV Stream — often includes a limited free trial for new users

For fans in non-wagering states—or anyone hesitant to add another paid subscription—these platforms open a short-term window to watch the Breeders’ Cup without barriers. Just check local carriage for channel availability, and you’re good to go.

Here’s the business logic: Free trials work.

Studies across digital industries show that 20–25% of people who sign up for a free trial convert to paid subscribers once they experience value firsthand. For event-driven offers — think playoffs, championship weekends, or one-time specials — that number can climb even higher.

A short, 48-hour free window on Peacock or FanDuel TV for Breeders’ Cup weekend could:

Expand accessibility — removing the paywall for casual or curious fans;

Eliminate confusion — one platform, one login, all races; and

Create new revenue — by converting trial viewers into paying subscribers after the event.

It’s a win-win: racing gets new eyes, and the networks gain new customers.

Even if just 5–10% of trial users convert, the math makes sense. If 100,000 people take advantage of a Breeders’ Cup trial, that’s 5,000–10,000 new subscribers — roughly $50,000 to $100,000 in first-month revenue at a $10/month average, not counting retention or repeat months.

Accessibility isn’t charity; it’s strategy. A small gesture on racing’s biggest stage could yield long-term gains in both audience and loyalty.

Of course, there are practical challenges: licensing, blackouts, subscriber cannibalization. But the potential reward — new viewers, new fans, new revenue — outweighs the risk.

The Breeders’ Cup is one of racing’s greatest showcases. It deserves to be easy to watch, not hard to find.

Instead of asking fans to juggle eight channel changes or multiple subscriptions, let’s make it simple: One event. One login. Two days of the best horses in the world.

Let’s give new fans a chance to fall in love with the sport, not by making them pay to find it, but by inviting them to experience it. Because goodwill doesn’t just grow audiences, it grows racing.