A wave of Netflix subscription cancellations is sweeping Japan after the national baseball team was eliminated in the quarterfinals of the 2026 World Baseball Classic (WBC), failing in its bid for back-to-back titles.
According to Mainichi Shimbun and other Japanese media outlets on the 16th (local time), Japan lost 5-8 to Venezuela at LoanDepot Park in Miami, Florida, ending their tournament run in the quarterfinals.
The early exit shocked fans, as the team had been considered a strong championship favorite with major league stars including Shohei Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto of the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Shortly after the match, Japanese social media was flooded with posts sharing screenshots of Netflix subscription cancellation screens.
The backlash stems from Netflix holding exclusive broadcasting rights for all 47 WBC games in Japan. According to Mainichi Shimbun, Netflix paid approximately 15 billion yen (about 140 billion won) for the rights—five times the roughly 3 billion yen paid in the previous tournament.
Terrestrial broadcasters that had previously carried WBC coverage lost out in the bidding war and could not air the tournament. Watching the games was effectively impossible without a Netflix subscription.
Broadcasting rights controversies are not unique to Japan. South Korea saw similar debate in February when one broadcaster secured exclusive rights to the 2026 Milan-Cortina Winter Olympics.
As global OTT platforms and capital-rich companies rapidly expand into sports broadcasting, discussions are expected to intensify in both Japan and South Korea over how to guarantee universal access to major sporting events of national interest.
