Interest in Major League Baseball has surged to its highest level on record in CivicScience’s polling, with 47% of U.S. adults saying they will follow the 2026 season at least “somewhat” closely — a sharp rise from 35% ahead of the 2025 campaign, the real-time market-research firm reported. The boost comes as the sport rolls out a high-profile rules overhaul and navigates a shifting broadcast landscape that includes exclusive streaming windows.
The uptick is concentrated among younger fans: Gen Z adults (18–29) and Millennials (30–44) show the strongest intent to tune in. Men remain more likely than women to follow the season — 53% versus 40% — but other shifts suggest the sport’s audience composition is changing. CivicScience found that among people who said they were at least somewhat likely to watch the World Baseball Classic earlier this month, 86% also plan to follow the MLB season, tying international tournament interest to the regular season’s momentum.
A central driver of renewed attention is the Automated Ball-Strike (ABS) challenge system introduced for 2026. ABS lets batters, pitchers and catchers challenge individual ball-and-strike calls, and CivicScience data show the share of fans citing “rule changes” as a primary reason for watching jumped from 14% last year to 21% this season. Asked specifically about ABS, 21% of MLB viewers said they were more likely to watch because of it, while 15% said it made them less likely to tune in and 63% reported no impact. Among those who follow MLB “very” closely, nearly half (47%) said ABS made them more likely to watch.
Broadcast changes are also affecting access and behavior. The season opened with a Netflix-exclusive game and several clubs are experimenting with direct-to-consumer streaming, moves that have produced a mixed reception among fans. CivicScience — citing data used by Sports Business Journal — found a notable share of MLB fans, particularly women, intended to subscribe to a new streaming service specifically to watch games this year, indicating that some viewers are willing to migrate platforms for content.
Betting interest is climbing modestly as well. Among adults 21 and over who watch MLB, 16% now say they are “very” likely to bet on games this season, up from 14% the prior year. The increase is driven chiefly by women, whose likelihood to bet rose three percentage points versus a one-point gain among men, reinforcing earlier signals that female bettors are a growing demographic in sports wagering.
CivicScience’s profiling of MLB followers paints a commercially attractive but psychologically mixed picture. Fans planning to follow the season report higher recent stress and worry yet are actively seeking self-care — they are more than twice as likely as non-followers to express a strong desire to begin a self-care routine. They also tilt toward premium purchasing: followers are four times more likely than non-followers to prioritize brand name over price and nearly three times as likely to be open to trying newly launched brands. Financially, followers express greater optimism about their personal situations over the next six months and are almost twice as likely to plan to use tax refunds for shopping; they are also roughly 30 percentage points more likely to plan summer travel.
With a long season barely underway, the convergence of rule changes, new broadcast deals and rising betting intent is reshaping why and how Americans engage with baseball. CivicScience says those dynamics — especially among younger viewers and an expanding cohort of female bettors — will be crucial for leagues, broadcasters and advertisers attempting to convert short-term interest into sustained viewership.