ESPN and the NFL have officially reached a deal.
According to The Athletic’s Andrew Marchand, the Disney-owned network has reached an agreement to acquire multiple NFL Media properties, including the NFL Network and RedZone channel. The deal brings an end to negotiations that took place over the course of the last four years and had clearly gained steam in recent weeks.
Obviously, the implications of such a deal are massive on multiple fronts.
For the NFL, the league will acquire equity in ESPN — previously reported by CNBC to be approximately 10 percent — which possesses the potential to be worth billions of dollars. It also marks the culmination of a journey that first began in 2003, when the league first launched NFL Media.
Meanwhile, the Worldwide Leader will increase its NFL offerings with access to properties including the NFL Network, RedZone, seven regular-season games and the league’s fantasy football business. The timing isn’t coincidental, as ESPN is set to launch its direct-to-consumer streaming service this fall.
While an official release date for the streaming service — which will simply be called “ESPN” — has yet to be revealed, Marchand reports that it’s coming soon. Meanwhile, the deal between ESPN and the NFL is expected to officially be announced next week, with Disney scheduled to host its quarterly earnings call on Wednesday.
But despite the agreement, it will likely take a while for the new deal to officially go into effect, as it will be subject to regulatory approval. According to Marchand, that process could take between nine and 12 months, meaning that the newfound ESPN-NFL partnership might not truly materialize until the 2026 season, which will culminate with ESPN hosting its first Super Bowl in February 2027.
As for what the partnership will look like once it comes to fruition, there has been no shortage of speculation about ESPN’s newfound conflict of interest with regard to its coverage of the league and what the network might do to beloved properties such as RedZone. Whether those concerns are justified, overblown or somewhere in-between, we’ll find out soon enough, as the long-awaited ESPN-NFL partnership is officially on the way.
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.