Gabrielle Russon
Disney posted a strong earnings report as the entertainment giant announced deals with the NFL and WWE.
ESPN and the NFL have reached new licensing agreements for content — which includes an extension of the NFL Draft and football games — airing on ESPN’s streaming service launching this month. ESPN will acquire NFL Network in exchange for giving the NFL a 10% equity stake in ESPN, the company said.
The ESPN streaming service will also exclusively offer WWE premium live events, like WrestleMania, as part of what is reported to be a $1.6 billion deal.
Disney also said its theme parks are thriving despite new competition from Orlando. For the third quarter, operating income from Disney’s theme parks division rose 13% annually, to $2.5 billion. The company’s overall revenue rose to $23.7 billion, a 2% increase compared to the same time period in 2024.
Walt Disney World broke a record for third-quarter revenue, Disney Chief Financial Officer Hugh Johnston said, although he did not disclose the actual figure.
The record comes after Epic Universe, Universal’s third theme park gate in Orlando, officially opened to the general public in May.
People are spending more at Disney’s parks and attendance was also up, Johnston said.
“In light of the fact that there’s a competitive offering in the marketplace, the fact that attendance came in as well as it did, is something that we feel terrific about,” Johnston said.
Disney also said President Donald Trump’s One Big Beautiful Bill will benefit the company financially.
“We’ll talk about that more on the Q4 call, but we do expect a positive cash tax impact, which obviously benefits us from a cash flow perspective,” Johnston said.
Disney is undergoing several major expansions abroad and in Orlando.
At Disney World’s Magic Kingdom, a highly anticipated Villains Land is one of several construction projects underway. Disney is also building a brand new park in Abu Dhabi.
Meanwhile, Disney Cruise Line is launching two new ships this year: the Disney Destiny and Disney Adventure, the latter which can hold up to 7,000 passengers and will be the company’s largest ship.
“It’s a floating, essentially, ambassador for the Disney brand,” CEO Bob Iger said of the Adventure sailing in Southeast Asia.
Johnston said Disney cruises are already about half-booked for 2026, with the newer ships having higher occupancy.
Iger elaborated how the cruises play a big role for the company’s experiences division.
“We’ve discovered that many of the people who sail on our current ships have such a great experience that they are the first to want to sail on our new ships,” Iger said. “So interestingly enough, what we’re getting is, in effect, repeat visitation onto new ships when we’re building a bigger base of consumers.”
