The Big Ten is in the process of finalizing its media rights deals, and sources tell The Athletic the league expects to make an official announcement early next week. In a stunning development, ESPN has pulled out of negotiations, sources with direct knowledge of the negotiations confirmed to The Athletic.
In addition to Fox, which had locked up Big Ten rights months ago, the conference is likely to partner with CBS and NBC. Those deals, if finalized, could result in the following Saturday slate: a noon ET game on Fox, a 3:30 pm ET game on CBS and prime time on NBC. Several sources involved in the negotiations have reiterated over the past month that the Big Ten has prioritized those windows throughout the process.
ESPN has officially pulled out of Big Ten negotiations after saying no to the conference’s final offer of a seven-year deal worth $380 million annually, a source told The Athletic on Tuesday. Sports Business Journal first reported the developments.
ESPN’s rejection of the Big Ten’s bid was only for 13 of the Big Ten’s “B”/”C” game package; ESPN had also looked at a prime time package. Fox has already secured the league’s “A” package of games, which will carry into the midday window.
ESPN’s exclusive 10-year deal with the SEC, starting in 2024-25, is believed to be worth about $300 million. That deal includes 3:30 pm ET and prime-time windows for major conference games, which differ from what the network used to play with the Big Ten. Clearly, the world leader didn’t value the Big Ten’s secondary package at a higher price for fewer years than its SEC deal, especially with the network already bound to the ACC.
The news is, without a doubt, historic. ESPN has carried Big Ten football and basketball games for the past 40 years.
ESPN has mid-afternoon and prime-time windows for its next deal with the SEC, plus deals with the ACC and perhaps future deals with the Pac-12 (post-2024) and Big 12 (post -25).
However, this fall will mark ESPN’s 40th and final year of broadcasting Big Ten football.
— Matt Fortuna (@Matt_Fortuna) August 9, 2022
The Big Ten is also likely to add some sort of streaming option, a source told The Athletic, though it’s still unclear how it will be structured and whether or not Amazon or Apple will be involved. Both companies have significantly increased their investment in live sports programming over the past year. Another streaming candidate being considered is Peacock, which is already part of NBC’s bidding, a separate source said. That would make sense if NBC gets a Big Ten package, as it is now expected to do.
CBS is expected to pay the Big Ten $350 million annually in its new deal, a source confirmed to The Athletic. NBC is also expected to pay about $350 million annually, according to multiple reports. Multiple outlets have reported that the Big Ten is looking to eclipse $1 billion in annual rights fees in its new deal.
The Big Ten said in a statement Tuesday that “the overall construction of the new rights agreements has not been finalized.”
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What we know about the Big Ten rights negotiations
“The conference continues to have productive meetings with linear and direct-to-consumer media partners,” the Big Ten said. “We are committed to providing unparalleled resources and exposure opportunities for Big Ten Conference member institutions, athletic programs, student-athletes, coaches and fans. We are extremely grateful to media companies that recognize the value of Big Ten programming and want to bring it to our fans around the world in an advanced way.”
With ESPN no longer in the mix to broadcast Big Ten football, expect the network to get involved in one or both of the Pac-12 and Big 12 conferences, whose rights will come up next. The Pac-12 already opened its exclusive negotiating window with ESPN after USC and UCLA moved to the Big Ten.
– Richard Deitsch and Matt Fortuna contributed to this report.
(Photo: Matthew O’Haren / USA Today)