TelevisaUnivision’s third quarter ran on two tracks: a World Cup-fueled 51% revenue jump in Mexico, and a 24% drop in US advertising, with a $372 million write-down on broadcast licenses tipping the company into an operating loss despite a 9% gain in total revenue.
TelevisaUnivision grew third-quarter revenue 9% to $1.38 billion, driven by a 51% increase in Mexico, while US advertising fell 24% and a $372 million non-cash charge to write down television broadcast licenses pushed the company to an operating loss of $119 million. Adjusted OIBDA slipped 1% to $461.3 million from $466.7 million.
Net income was $57.0 million, compared with $90.5 million, and included an income tax benefit of $375.7 million against a $33.9 million provision in the prior year. However, US revenue declined 14% to $714.5 million.
US advertising fell to $327.5 million from $428.2 million, which the company said reflected cyclical headwinds primarily from competitive sports programming and a prior-year comparison that included the Gold Cup. US subscription and licensing revenue slid 4% to $372 million on lower content licensing, partly offset by pricing growth in ViX’s premium tiers.
In Mexico, revenue climbed 51% to $665.1 million, or 43% excluding foreign exchange. Advertising rose 19% to $389.1 million on the World Cup, and subscription and licensing revenue more than doubled, up 156% to $268.1 million, on content licensing and growth in ViX’s premium tier. Consolidated subscription and licensing revenue rose 30% to $640.1 million, including about $90 million from sublicensing World Cup rights across Spanish-speaking Latin American countries. Favorable foreign exchange added 300 basis points to total revenue growth. The company said its direct-to-consumer business posted record revenue, up by double digits.
Consolidated advertising revenue declined 5% to $716.6 million. Operating expenses rose 14% to $918.3 million, or 11% excluding foreign exchange, mainly on World Cup rights and production costs. The company reported an operating loss of $119.3 million versus operating income of $265.3 million a year earlier.
TelevisaUnivision ended the period with $753 million in cash and a net debt to Adjusted OIBDA ratio of 5.5x, unchanged from the end of the second quarter. Operating cash flow was $54 million, compared with $34 million used in the third quarter of 2025, and capital expenditures were $28 million.
For the nine months ended September 30, revenue rose 8% to $3.78 billion, with US revenue down 9% to $2.14 billion and Mexico up 43% to $1.64 billion. US advertising fell 22% to $960.7 million, and Adjusted OIBDA declined 3% to $1.17 billion.
TelevisaUnivision CEO Daniel Alegre said, “Our performance in the third quarter reflected disciplined execution against our multiplatform strategy as we delivered exceptional results from the World Cup in Mexico while gaining momentum in the U.S. with increased engagement across our fall content slate and robust sports portfolio.” He added, “As we close out the year, we remain focused on maximizing the value of our content across multiple platforms to reach a wider audience and increase our monetization opportunities.”
The company’s portfolio includes the Univision, Las Estrellas, Canal 5, and UniMás broadcast networks and 38 cable networks. On the audio side, it said it owns and operates the largest Spanish-language audio platform in the US across 35 terrestrial stations and the Uforia digital platform, but did not break out audio results. Among its 2026 radio moves, TelevisaUnivision launched Spanish-language CHR Latino Mix 103.9/98.3 FM (KLXM/KLXO) in Los Angeles on August 3, replacing Adult Hits Recuerdo, and in February rolled out a TUDN Radio national HD network with 47 affiliates.
