Meta now says its VR Glasses will arrive with a much bigger live sports calendar than it promised at Connect. In an interview published October 21 by Sports Business Journal, Sarah Malkin, director of entertainment content for Reality Labs, said Meta will offer more than 150 live “immersive games” next year, with the majority FREE in Meta’s VR TV app.
From 100 to 150: What Changed
At Connect in September, Meta’s headline sports promise was “100+” immersive live US events each year once Meta VR Glasses go on sale in spring 2027 for $1,299.99. We noted at the time that the 100-event pledge came with loose wording about which partners counted toward the total.
Malkin’s new figure raises that target by roughly half. She told SBJ the current range before the glasses launch is about 20 to 40 live immersive games, so the 2027 plan represents something like a four- to seven-fold increase in live programming. Meta has not published a schedule, a per-league breakdown, or a definition of what counts as a single “game” in that total.
Who Is Supplying the Games
According to SBJ, Meta’s VR sports portfolio already includes league deals with UFC and MLB and media partners including ESPN, TNT, NBC and Paramount. ESPN’s piece is already visible on Quest: Meta and ESPN began streaming select college football games live in 180 degrees on October 10, following the Connect announcement of ESPN immersive sports.
MLB gave the most concrete number. Kenny Gersh, MLB’s EVP of media, business development and product, told SBJ the league plans to air six local games in the immersive format next season, with the potential for more in the playoffs. He was candid that MLB is hedging rather than betting: “I don’t know how this is going to play out,” Gersh said, adding that whatever device wins, “I want to make sure we’re there.”
How the Broadcasts Are Built
Malkin described the production stack to SBJ as 180-degree, 8K camera feeds captured through production partner Cosm, with stadium audio mixed in Dolby Atmos. The SBJ demo used highlight packages with preset camera angles, but Malkin said that by the time the glasses launch, viewers will be able to choose their own vantage point during live games, including courtside, Octagon-side, behind home plate, and higher press-box or suite views.
Cosm matters here because it already produces immersive feeds for its own dome venues, and broadcasters are using that pipeline elsewhere. FOX, for example, recently streamed Ohio State at Indiana to Galaxy XR and Cosm. Shared production means more live inventory can reach headsets without each league building its own VR crew.
What It Means
Live sports is the clearest argument Meta has for a $1,299.99 entertainment device. SBJ’s reporter, who has used headsets since the original Oculus Rift, wrote that the 100-gram glasses were the first time he could imagine sitting through a full game in VR. That comfort claim, if it holds up in reviews, is what turns a 150-game calendar from a demo reel into a reason to buy.
The caveats are the same ones we flagged in September. “Free” covers the majority, not all, of the games, and Meta’s own footnotes have mentioned a possible subscription for some content. The count is a TARGET, not a published fixture list. And the leagues themselves describe immersive rights as incremental revenue rather than a core business. Until Meta names games, dates, regions and prices, 150 is a PLANNING number.
Key Numbers
- Meta VR Glasses: about 100 grams, $1,299.99, spring 2027 launch.
- Live immersive games before the glasses: about 20 to 40, per Malkin.
- Connect pledge: 100+ immersive live US sports events per year.
- New 2027 target: 150+ live immersive games, most free in the VR TV app.
- MLB: six local games in the immersive format next season.
Sources: Sports Business Journal (Rob Schaefer, October 21, 2026); Meta. For the full hardware rundown, read our Meta VR Glasses price, release date and specs guide.