Posted on 08/18/2022 10:04:46 AM PDT by FLNittany
After much anticipation, the Big Ten has finalized a blockbuster media rights partnership that is the largest in all of college sports.
The deal is at least $7 billion total, sources confirmed to Front Office Sports. The rights will be shared between FOX, CBS, NBC, and NBC’s Peacock, and include not only football and basketball but all olympic sports. They’ll run from July 1, 2023 to the end of the 2029-30 season.
In total, the deal will reach the mid-$7 billion range, a source told FOS. But it will slowly increase throughout the seven years. The first year, before USC and UCLA join the conference, each existing school will receive about the same amount as it does in the final year of its current deal. Then, with the additions of the Bruins and Trojans, the value will go up to the $90 million a year range.
It’s a major coup for Commissioner Kevin Warren, whose initial tenure with the Big Ten began with controversy over the handling of college football during COVID-19.
“The Big Ten Conference media rights agreements are more than just dollars and deals,” Warren said in a statement. “They are a mechanism to provide stability and maximum exposure for our student-athletes, member institutions and partners during these uncertain times in collegiate athletics.”
The Big Ten says it will “dominate” Saturday football. It will include marquee games at noon ET on Fox, 3:30 p.m. ET on CBS, and primetime on NBC. NBC will attempt to make the Big Ten the “NFL” of college football, using the Saturday night window as a complement to Sunday night football, as FOS previously reported. NBC games will be “simul-streamed” on Peacock. The Big Ten football championships will be split between the networks.
The Big Ten Network, owned by Fox, appears to hold the majority of olympic sports content. CBS will host men’s and women’s basketball, and broadcast the women’s basketball championship for the first time. Fox will also carry men’s basketball.
The deal also marks the first time in four decades that ESPN will not be part of the Big Ten’s media rights. The Worldwide Leader in Sports will now look to renew NCAA championships including women’s basketball and the College Football Playoff, sources previously told FOS. It’s also looking at Big 12 and Pac-12 media rights.
The SEC has ESPN/Disney and their TV revenue will be less than the BIG
The Big 10-2 or whatever can’t generate $7 billion in revenue in 10 years. It’s just not that hot of a conference.
Their best teams are Ohio state and Michigan, and they get exposed and destroyed anytime they play the SEC.
Good luck (a) figuring out which network is going to be hosting your favorite team's game on any given day, and (b) affording all of the related streaming services.
“The Big Ten Conference media rights agreements are more than just dollars and deals...”
Okay, that might be somewhat true... it's probably 98.9% about the money and 1.1% about other stuff.
Thank goodness they are getting funding from the corrupt fake news and not the Saudi’s like LIV.
It already has apparently (btw, there are 14 teams + soon USC & UCLA). It's up to the networks to worry about making money now.
If you are the SEC you go second, now you know the market, and SEC games typically draw as big or bigger numbers than average Big 10 games, the contracts the SEC will agree to will be as big or bigger than any previous contract.
Although football is the king of this contract, the SEC has a much better all around sports environment than the Big 10...which carry some weight.
Then we will continue to see the preseason polling and media push continue to push the lackluster Big 10 into something they are not.
It’s always been about money. For instance, Notre Dame being ranked #5 is ludicrous, but NBC needs their revenue generator to be there so they make money.
To clarify, I’m just using ND as an example, not saying they’re in the Big 10.
I’ve never seen a more overblown industry than professional team sports. It even eclipses Hollyweird.
The MSM is more well-oiled than even the Saudis.
If it helps break ESPN’s death-grip on college football then it’s a good thing.
All the charm has been squeezed out of college football.
I have come to believe that college sports and sports in general should not be big business and an opiate that distracts people from more balanced life. Plus, I can’t stand unsportsmanlike athletes. Whatever happened to the days of just handing over the ball to a ref after a touchdown? It’s much more intimidating to act like you expect to score and it is no big deal.
I’ll still tune into some games, but I won’t pay for cable or the Peacock app. More than likely I will listen to Penn State football on the radio as I work in my shop or around the house. That’s one way to ignore some of the woke BS.
But CBS usually had the marquee SEC matchups, so I guess that’s going away.
So then why are the Big 10 schools still increasing their Tuition nearly every year?
Yes. Gone.
I bet the ABC/ESPN folks are crapping in their pants when they see what the SEC is going to demand from them.
When you think that the other 3 national championships were won by two teams not in the SEC but in the southeast region (FSU 2013; Clemson 2016, 2018), we're basically down to the past 16 seasons having 15 national championships won by the southeast region, and the entire rest of the country just one. Doesn't the rest of the country take college football seriously? LOL
I’m calling it, SEC will go to Amazon Prime.
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