NBC has a stacked yearly schedule, with big tournaments like the NFL and NBA seasons. The network also had a chance to earn big by acquiring the rights to broadcast the Olympics. With a lineup this tough to beat, one would expect parent company Comcast to be well-set financially. However, the records paint an extremely grim picture for the media house.

Comcast Media, which includes NBCUniversal and streaming service Peacock, posted losses of $436 million in Q1 2026, per a report by TheWrap. That figure was a major letdown, considering NBC marketed its February programming as ‘Legendary February.’ The month saw events like the Super Bowl, the Olympics, and the NBA All-Star Game. While the network did beat CBS in ratings for this month, for the first time since 2019, it still has a lot of money in the red. But Comcast’s media division managed to generate 61% revenue jump to $7.3 billion in the first quarter.

Around this time last year, NBC made a profit of $107 million. This year, though, costs shot up a lot because it spent heavily to secure the rights for those major sports events. NBC pays about $2.5 billion per year for its NBA rights in an 11-year deal that includes games like Sunday Night Basketball. It also pays around $2 billion per year for its NFL package, which includes Sunday Night Football, playoff games, and the Super Bowl every four years. According to the report, Comcast spent $5 billion to secure the rights for NFL and NBA programming. They got some coveted games out of the deals too, but the numbers just haven’t materialized into something useful.

Peacock took a big hit. It alone accounted for $432 million lost in the first quarter, which is almost double the $215 million loss it had during the same period last year. The streaming service did bulk up its subscriber base by adding 2 million subscribers, taking the total subscribers to 46 million from 44 million. It’s decent growth, but could have been better, knowing the significance of the events.

Comcast had also spent big in technological advancements for its broadcasts. Viewers could watch the Super Bowl in RealTime4K format, which was 30 seconds faster than other 4K services. For the Olympics, the media giant also rolled out a selection feature, allowing users to choose which events they wanted to watch. There was also a multiview feature, which would enable the user to consume four feeds simultaneously. Other sports like the NFL and NBA could be watched in tandem with the Olympics. While viewership was up because of these developments, they haven’t added to profits.

Fortunately, there is a silver lining.

Peacock surpasses $2 billion in revenue for the first time

Streaming platform Peacock crossed a big milestone by generating over $2 billion in revenue. The revenue rose 12% over the year to $2.1 billion. This included $901 million from advertising, $1.2 billion from distribution and subscriptions, and $189 million from other sources. However, programming costs of nearly $1.95 on the platform are a big reason why it reported a $432 million loss. After including another $586 million in expenses on marketing and promotions, total expenses were estimated at around $2.5 billion.

There is still some optimism within Comcast. Chief Financial Officer Jason Armstrong said Peacock is expected to reach a “meaningful inflection point” in Q2 and could become profitable for the first time.

“This quarter represents our peak EBITDA dilution from NBA costs,” Armstrong said. “We feel good about the direction from here.”

Peacock is still struggling to match its rivals, such as Netflix, on a profitable and sizeable basis. Despite these challenges, Comcast’s shares rose over 6% after it exceeded expectations and showed improvements in broadband and pay TV trends. Overall, Comcast did see its total revenue grow by 5.3 percent, reaching $31.5 billion. We’ll have to wait and watch what’s next in store for NBC and its sports programming for this year.