One year ahead of the Pac-12 officially adding six new members, the rebuilt conference has secured a deal to make CBS its top media rights partner for the foreseeable future.
On Monday, the league and network announced that they have agreed to terms on a five-year extension of their current partnership, beginning with the upcoming 2025-26 college football season and continuing through the 2030-31 campaign. Currently consisting of conference holdovers Oregon State and Washington State, the Pac-12 is set to officially add Boise State, Colorado State, Fresno State, San Diego State, Utah State and Gonzaga (basketball-only) in 2026.
As for the details of the deal, it will see a minimum of three regular-season football games and a minimum of three regular-season men’s basketball games air on CBS and Paramount+ each season. In addition to football and men’s basketball games throughout the regular season airing on CBS Sports Network (details have yet to be announced), CBS and Paramount+ will also air the Pac-12 Championship Game and the men’s basketball tournament.
“Our goal with this process was to find transformational partnerships for the new Pac-12, and throughout our discussions and time together it became more and more clear that a partnership with CBS Sports would be just that,” Pac-12 Commissioner Teresa Gould said in a statement. “I am thankful to the team at CBS Sports for seeing our vision and investing in our shared future as we build, launch and realize a new Pac-12 together.”
Added CBS Sports Executive Vice President of Programming Dan Weinberg: “As the new Pac-12’s primary media partner, CBS Sports’ top-tier coverage will showcase the best of the conference’s football and men’s basketball games annually across our platforms, including the championship game for both sports. Extending this partnership strengthens our multiplatform college football and basketball schedule and, at a pivotal moment for the new Pac-12, allows us to collaborate, grow the conference and expand its reach.”
All things considered, this deal appears to be similar to the one that the Mountain West is currently in its final year of with CBS, which is noteworthy considering the current litigation between the two conferences regarding the Pac-12’s impending additions. The release also noted that the Pac-12 will be announcing additional media partners at a later date, which has long been the expectation for the conference.
About Ben Axelrod
Ben Axelrod is a veteran of the sports media landscape, having most recently worked for NBC's Cleveland affiliate, WKYC. Prior to his time in Cleveland, he covered Ohio State football and the Big Ten for outlets including Cox Media Group, Bleacher Report, Scout and Rivals.