Does Comcast’s New Sports Plan Include March Madness Channels?

By Phillip Swann
The TV Answer Man – Follow me on X.

TV Answer Man, I just read your article on DIRECTV not having CBS for March Madness. That is messed up. What about Comcast’s new sports plan? Does it have the channels for March Madness? – Marcus, Miami.

Marcus, in January, eight days after DIRECTV launched its MySports programming bundle for $70 a month, Comcast’s Xfinity TV joined the fun with a News and Sports plan of its own for $70 a month. The price is roughly 30 percent less than the average programming bundle from DIRECTV or Xfinity that includes the major sports networks. But does it deliver all the channels you need for March Madness 2025?

What Channels Are In Xfinity’s News & Sports Plan?
The Xfinity ‘skinny bundle’ offers more than 50 broadcast, cable news and sports channels as well as other perks such as free Peacock and 300 hours of DVR storage. The channels include ACC Network, Big Ten Network, ESPN, FS1, Golf Channel, SEC Network, ABC, CBS, FOX, NBC, Telemundo, Univision, CNBC, CNN, FOX News and MSNBC, among others. The remainder of the lineup consists largely of channels available via an antenna or news and shopping nets.

Can You Watch March Madness With Xfinity’s News & Sports Plan?
The TV Answer Man noted in our article today on DIRECTV’s MySports package that it does not include CBS which will air roughly half of next month’s March Madness men’s college basketball tournament games. (The other games will be on TBS, TNT and truTV.) So, will the new Xfinity sports plan offer all the March Madness games?

Answer: No. Xfinity’s News & Sports plan does not include the Turner networks, TNT, TBS and truTV. That means that, amazingly enough, the two new sports plans designed to attract cost-conscious sports fans will not have all the games in one of the most important live sporting events of the year. (Talk about air balls.) That is. unless the two pay TV operators add the missing March Madness channels before the week of March 16-22 when the first games tip off.

Does Xfinity’s News & Sports Have Regional Sports Channels?
When you factor in that neither DIRECTV nor Xfinity’s new plans include regional sports networks, most sports fans will likely hesitate before subscribing. Who wants a ‘sports package’ that does not include your hometown team’s games (from the regional sports network) or half of the March Madness contests?

Will Comcast’s Xfinity TV Add TBS, TNT and truTV Before March Madness?
It’s likely that Comcast will push to add TBS, TNT and truTV before March Madness begins. However, there are no guarantees which makes it difficult for a rabid sports fan to sign up now, doesn’t it?

But if you are interested in learning more about Comcast’s Sports & News plan, click here.

Marcus, hope that answers your question. Happy viewing and stay safe!

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The TV Answer Man is veteran journalist Phillip Swann who has covered television for more than three decades. He will report on the latest news and answer your questions regarding new devices and services that are changing the way you watch TV. See the bio for Phillip Swann here.