YouTube TV vs. Disney (ESPN) dispute may mean you can't watch Kentucky vs. Auburn

by: Tyler Thompson9 hours agoMrsTylerKSR

youtube-tv-vs-espn-dispute-may-mean-you-cant-watch-kentucky-vs-auburn — Graphic via Canva

Two streaming giants are fighting, and sports fans are paying the price. Disney and YouTube TV failed to reach an agreement on a new distribution deal last night, which led to Disney pulling its channels, including ABC and the ESPN family of networks, from YouTube TV an hour before the midnight deadline. That puts an entire college football Saturday, including Kentucky vs. Auburn, which will air on SEC Network tomorrow night, at risk for YouTube TV’s over 10 million subscribers.

Carriage disputes are not uncommon these days, but typically, deals are reached in the final hours. That was not the case here, as the two sides reportedly couldn’t agree on per-subscriber fees. Therefore, Disney, which owns streaming services Hulu + Live TV, Fubo, and the new direct-to-consumer ESPN Unlimited streaming platform, yanked its channels off YouTube TV, which is owned by Google.

Both sides released statements blaming the other and said that negotiations would continue. YouTube TV is offering subscribers a $20 credit if the blackout continues “for an extended period of time.”

“Unfortunately, Google’s YouTube TV has chosen to deny their subscribers the content they value most by refusing to pay fair rates for our channels, including ESPN and ABC,” Disney’s statement reads. “Without a new agreement in place, their subscribers will not have access to our programming which includes the best lineup in live sports – anchored by the NFL, NBA, and college football, with 13 of the top 25 college teams playing this weekend.

“With a $3 trillion market cap, Google is using its market dominance to eliminate competition and undercut the industry-standard terms we’ve successfully negotiated with every other distributor. We know how frustrating this is for YouTube TV subscribers and remain committed to working toward a resolution as quickly as possible.”

“We know this is a frustrating and disappointing outcome for our subscribers and we continue to urge Disney to work with us constructively to reach a fair agreement that restores their networks to YouTube TV,” YouTube TV’s statement reads. “If their content remains off YouTube TV for an extended period of time, we’ll offer subscribers a $20 credit.”

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The SEC, whose games air exclusively on the ESPN family of networks thanks to a lucrative $3 billion deal, addressed the outage on social media, with a link for fans to send feedback to YouTube TV. Tomorrow, six SEC football games will air on ESPN’s networks, including Kentucky vs. Auburn on the SEC Network at 7:30 p.m. ET.

🚨 SEC fans, if you are a YouTube TV customer, you no longer have access to your favorite @SEC sports on ABC, ESPN, ESPN2, ESPNU, ESPNEWS, SEC Network and SEC Network+.

Fans can take action and keep watching by visiting https://t.co/YNmOGlcJGB. pic.twitter.com/XaBu1fGVyv
— Southeastern Conference (@SEC) October 31, 2025

I have a feeling a deal will be made today, but if it’s not, what do you do if you’re a YouTube TV subscriber and you want to watch Kentucky vs. Auburn or one of the many other games on tomorrow? You can sign up for one of the other streaming services, such as Hulu + Live TV, Fubo, ESPN+, DirecTV Stream, and Sling TV. We’ll also be showing the games at KSBar and Grille.

If you decide to hold out in hopes of a negotiation, you may have this same dilemma next week if a deal isn’t reached by Tuesday night. Kentucky Basketball’s season opener vs. Nicholls will stream on SEC Network+, as will next Friday’s game vs. Valparaiso.

Hopefully, we get to write another post later today telling you that a deal has been made and your weekend TV plans won’t be affected. Unfortunately, some really, really rich companies have to fight for a little while longer.