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Posted in: ABC, Disney+, Sports, TV | Tagged: disney, espn, nfl
ESPN, NFL Eye Deal with League Getting Equity Stake in ESPN: Report
Reports are the NFL and Disney-owned ESPN are in talk over a deal that would see the league take on an equity stake in the sports network.
Though a potential deal would still need some time to be finalized, and both parties involved have declined to comment, reports are that the NFL and Disney-owned ESPN could be getting a lot more "warm & fuzzy" with one another in the near future. The New York Post's Andrew Marchand reports that the NFL & ESPN are "in advanced talks" that could lead to the professional football league gaining an equity stake in the sports network. Here's how Marchand's reporting says the deal would work. On the ESPN side, the sports network would gain control of NFL Media (NFL Network, NFL.com, Red Zone, NFL Films & NFL+). On her NFL side, the league would receive a piece of ESPN. But before any deal can be finalized, the Players Association will have to give its blessing – and that won't happen until the matter of how revenue sharing would be handled under the players' union's Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA). Currently, ESPN pays the NFL approximately $2.6B per year for a rights package that includes 25 games – spotlighted during the sports network's Monday night prime-time schedule.
For the NFL, the move would finally allow the league to finally unload its networks after the latest round of licensing ($110B+ deals with ESPN, Amazon, CBS, Fox, NBC & YouTube) ended without interest. For ESPN, it's all about the sports network positioning itself in the best way possible before going direct-to-consumer (reportedly in 2025, but not confirmed). At that point, a sports fan could opt to subscribe to what ESPN has to offer directly, without a cable subscription. With the sports network making the move into new territory, having a strong sponsorship with one of the major professional sports leagues (NFL, MLB, NBA, etc.) would put ESPN in a much stronger position when it comes the bringing on the best distribution channels for its content.
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