Amazon has been slowly but surely moving into streaming sports content the past few years. The company buying video game publisher Electronic Arts would fit right into that playbook.

Amazon’s strategy thus far has been to use live sports programming, such as NFL “Thursday Night Football,” telecasts of the New York Yankees (Amazon owns an equity stake in the team’s YES Network) and the English Premier League to increase Amazon Prime subscribers and perhaps launch a sports bundle.

(Here’s my interview with Marie Donoghue, Amazon’s vice president of global sports video, a little over a year ago on the company’s sports strategy:)

It was reported Thursday that Amazon Prime Video and DirecTV struck a multi-year agreement that allows business owners to stream “Thursday Night Football” for their patrons. Amazon’s “TNF” broadcasts, including pregame, halftime and postgame coverage, will be available to more than 300,000 sports bars, restaurants, retail stores, hotel lounges, casinos and sports books, among other venues across the US

With Electronic Arts, Amazon would be extending its reach into the growing esports space. EA’s popular games include FIFA 21 and Madden NFL. EA’s titles include UFC, F1, NHL and PGA Tour. The acquisition of EA, much like streaming, targets a younger demographic in the sports space.

In fiscal 2022, EA reported net income of $311 million on $1.8 billion of revenue.