Key Points
- YouTube TV will introduce nearly a dozen genre-based channel packages in early 2026 through a new feature called YouTube TV Plans.
- The first bundle, the YouTube TV Sports Plan, will include major broadcast networks, FS1, the ESPN multiplex, NBC Sports Network and ESPN Unlimited.
- Google says the new plans will offer lower-cost options than YouTube TV’s $83 base package, though pricing and additional channel lineups were not disclosed.
Google-owned streaming cable television replacement YouTube TV is pressing forward with the development of new genre-based packages that will offer channels bundled across different themes like news, sports and entertainment, the company affirmed on Wednesday.
The packages will be rooted in a new feature called YouTube TV Plans, which will include nearly a dozen genre-based packages when they debut in early 2026, officials wrote in a blog post.
One package, called the YouTube TV Sports Plan, will offer “all the major broadcast networks” and access to Fox Sports 1 (FS1), the ESPN multiplex of cable channels, NBC Sports Network and ESPN Unlimited.
Google also didn’t reveal the other plans or channels available in them, and didn’t disclose the pricing of its plans in what was an extremely light announcement on the future feature.
Still, Google said the introduction of the genre-based plans will make it easier for YouTube TV subscribers to choose and pick which programming they wanted to receive, at prices that were far lower than its current base package.
The base YouTube TV plan costs $83 per month, but a price increase is expected in the coming weeks, following Google’s renewed agreements with Comcast’s NBC Universal and the Walt Disney Company in recent months.
“TV should be easy, giving viewers greater control over what they want to watch,” Christian Oestlien, the Vice President and Head of Subscriptions at YouTube, said in a statement. “Our goal is to let you tailor your subscription with more options. Whether you stick with our main YouTube TV plan with 100-plus channels, focus on sports, combine sports and news, or select a plan centered on family and entertainment content, subscribers will be able to easily choose the plan that works best for them.”
The new genre-based packages will allow subscribers to add other programming, like the Sports Pack, NFL RedZone and premium movie networks HBO, Starz and Paramount Plus with Showtime, for separate fees.
The introduction of the packages comes about a year after DIRECTV announced similar channel and price plans for its streaming service, which shares common branding with its satellite-based service.
The DIRECTV plans include MyNews at $40 per month, MyEntertainment at $35 per month, MySports at $70 per month and MyKids at $20 per month. The MySports plan allows fans to subscribe to regional sports networks and an expanded assortment of niche, national sports channels for separate fees.
DIRECTV’s plans include access to network-owned streaming apps like ESPN Unlimited, Hulu, Disney Plus and HBO Max at no extra cost.
Google affirmed its YouTube TV Sports plan will include ESPN Unlimited, but didn’t say if the company was introducing access to network-owned apps across its other plans. The company’s renewal with Disney allows it to offer access to Disney Plus and Hulu in the future.
