America’s Game will be staying put on CBS for the next decade-plus.
According to an announcement by CBS Sports on Monday, the network has reached a 10-year media rights extension for the Army-Navy football game that will keep the iconic matchup on CBS through 2038. CBS has been the exclusive home to the Army-Navy game since 1996. Incredibly, the matchup has aired on broadcast television each and every year since 1945.
CBS Sports, US Military Academy and US Naval Academy Reach Landmark 10-Year Rights Extension for Annual Army-Navy Football Game
Agreement Grants Exclusive Rights to America’s Game on CBS & Paramount+ Through 2038
Full Release: https://t.co/b9zIVoUrAOpic.twitter.com/70jBUADVM7
— CBS Sports PR (@CBSSportsGang) December 9, 2024
“CBS Sports is immensely proud of our decades-long association with the Army-Navy football game and our partnerships with the US Military and US Naval Academies,” said CBS Sports President & CEO David Berson. “America’s Game is special and has always been about more than football. We are privileged to document the extraordinary stories of the cadets and midshipmen on and off the field and will continue to celebrate the traditions and history of this great game while highlighting these venerated service academies for years to come.”
The extended agreement will allow CBS to continue its ownership of multiplatform rights to the game, including streaming on Paramount+. It will also continue staples of the game’s coverage such as the March On pregame tradition.
Chet Gladchuk, Director of Athletics at the United States Naval Academy, said in a statement, “The CBS production always speaks to more than just a football game, but the many stories of patriotism, our collective pride in duty, honor, freedom, and the strength of our great nation. Every December, this leading network portrays America’s game as more than just a football contest, but also as an event that exudes universal respect for the purity of amateurism embedded in the character of our nation’s future leaders.”
Beginning this year, the Saturday of the Army-Navy game will feel a touch different than in the past on account of the expanded College Football Playoff. With the playoff taking center stage on days traditionally reserved for lesser bowl games, two bowl games have opted to play on the same day as Army-Navy. The Celebration Bowl between Jackson State and South Carolina State will kickoff at noon ET, and the Camellia Bowl between South Alabama and Western Michigan will kickoff at 9:00 p.m. ET. Neither will compete directly with Army-Navy, which retains its traditional 3:00 p.m. ET start.
Army and Navy will take the field against each other for the 125th time this Saturday. Coverage will begin at 2:30 p.m. ET with College Football Today on CBS.