It\u2019s spring, when an old man\u2019s fancy turns to thoughts of money. (Then again, that\u2019s basically true in summer, fall, and winter, too.)<\/p>\n
The NFL and CBS are indeed working toward a new rights deal, we\u2019re told.<\/p>\n
News of another contract between the NFL and CBS emerged via John Ourand of Puck<\/a>. More recently, Alex Sherman of CNBC echoed the same sentiment, adding that CBS may add another \u201c$1 billion or more<\/a>\u201d to its current annual rate of $2.1 billion.<\/p>\n Under a new agreement, CBS would retain its Sunday afternoon package that features a pair of weekly windows and, roughly every other week, a late-afternoon (mostly) national game that will often generate gigantic audience numbers.<\/p>\n Here\u2019s the most important wrinkle. In lieu of tacking the new arrangement onto the back end of a current deal that the NFL could (and would) scrap after the 2029 season, the new rate would take effect \u201cas soon as next season,\u201d with an eight-year duration.<\/p>\n And so, basically, CBS could end up paying an extra $4 billion or more over the course of four seasons that had already been contractually settled.<\/p>\n But that\u2019s the price to pay for the hottest property in all of broadcasting. Nothing gathers a live audience like NFL football. With the recent NBA deals making the existing NFL deals look paltry by comparison, Big Shield isn\u2019t content to wait until 2030 to make up the big gap that a smaller sport has managed to finagle.<\/p>\n The thinking is that, after finishing up the CBS contract, that template will then be used for the other companies that hold current windows. Pay more now, and keep the package through 2033. Fox, NBC, ESPN, and Amazon will possibly get the same opportunity to pump up the existing numbers in order to retain their slates of games.<\/p>\n The deals, especially on Sunday afternoons, will surely include full flexibility to slice games away from Sundays for a smattering of other games that would be sold to streamers like Netflix and YouTube, which don\u2019t want an every-week arrangement but which will pay handsomely for a handful of games.<\/p>\n Currently, the NFL gets $10.1 billion per year for its TV rights. That number is destined to increase, sooner than later. And the league has the leverage to make it happen.<\/p>\n The message is simple. Pay more immediately or risk losing your entire package by 2030.<\/p>\n