Turns out that ESPN never really went away. Bob Iger, the CEO of Disney, ESPN’s parent company, has renewed talks with Roger Goodell & Co. for a $2B acquisition of NFL Network. In return, he is encouraging (read: persuading) Roger Goodell’s NFL to own a 10% equity stake in the company. 

If the deal goes through, it will potentially be the most consequential media rights agreement in history–leaving its impact beyond the NFL and football fans. ESPN is eying a three-fold acquisition of the NFL network:

1. NFL Network – Provides 365-degree coverage of shows, exclusive games, and analysis.
2. NFL RedZone – Provides touchdowns and key plays that fans might have missed.
3. NFL+ – Live out-of-market preseason, local, regular, and postseason games, and library programming on demand.

Acquiring the media rights of all three networks will cost the broadcast giant upwards of $2B. Andrew Marchand of the Athletic, who first reported it in his podcast, noted, “When we look back in 10, 15 years, if this deal goes down, this could be a very significant point for ESPN’s growth.” 

Indeed, it would. 

We are in a world where streaming is gaining momentum. It’s the equivalent of what television was back in the 60s – a potential disruptor that will change the way we consume content (sports, in this case). By acquiring the NFL+, ESPN will have access to shows that are massively popular among fans, exclusive content that only the NFL can provide. And then some more. 

Will ESPN broadcast the Super Bowl in the coming years? 

ESPN has a long history with the NFL. The latest acquisition, if it comes to fruition, will cement that forever. 

• 1980: ESPN televised the NFL draft for the first time. 
• 1987: ESPN signed its first cable deal with the NFL.
• 1990: ESPN renewed the NFL contract, expanding its coverage.
• 1994: ESPN’s third contract extension with the NFL.
• 2011: ESPN secured a $15B media rights contract with the NFL.
• 2021: ESPN agreed to a $2.7B/annum deal with the NFL

Currently, Fox is on the lookout for securing the broadcasting rights of the NFL draft. The current contract ends in 2026, opening up a spot for competitors to move in. ESPN’s comprehensive deal with the NFL will nip that possibility in the bud. 

The viewership of the NFL draft and Super Bowl has continued to increase. The first round of the NFL Draft 2024 averaged 12 million viewers across ESPN, ABC, and the NFL Network. Whereas, Super Bowl still remains the king – Fox witnessed 127M viewers this year, a record in itself. 

We noticed a similar trend among our readers as well: 

• 2025 Super Bowl-related viewership increased by 218x that of last year.
• Between January and March, Super Bowl-related content received 5.9M footfalls.
• NFL audience increased by 243% in the last 12 months compared to 2023.

Unsurprisingly, ESPN placed a strategic clause in the 2021 media rights deal. NFL can opt out from any broadcast partner in 2029, save for ESPN. In a future where the NFL & ESPN have established this mutual relationship, the latter might decide to break away from its commitment with Fox. If that happens, ESPN will probably be the front-runner to stream the Super Bowl in 2030. That will also mean one thing.

ESPN is fostering a big shift toward streaming

The consumption trend in the USA has taken a major pivot toward streaming in the last couple of years. More and more households are now switching to bundle streaming services instead of relying on cable. Multiple studies conducted in recent times paint a clearer picture of the shift.

• Nielsen Survey: Streaming accounted for 41.6% of time spent watching TV in November 2024. 
• Emarketer Survey: Digital sports viewership surpassed traditional cable broadcast for the first time in December 2024.
• Evoca Survey: Globally, revenue from pay TV is expected to decline by 12.5 million between 2020 and 2027.

What’s more telling is that the traditional viewers of cable TV, aged 65 and older, are also adapting to streaming services. 65+ demographic audience is consuming YouTube more than ever – a 96% uptick in the last two years. 

Whereas the number of audience between 50-64 has increased by 62% in the same time period.  Another survey found that 64% of US adults now utilize a combination of cable and streaming to fulfill their needs. 

ESPN executives are already aware of this transformative shift in audience preference. Let’s not forget that these talks have been going on for some time now. Even last year, there were rumors, but the deal failed to come to fruition. While ESPN has correctly recognized the industry-wide pivot toward streaming, there is another factor. 

RedZone–the dark horse of the NFL Network

The Red Zone has become the go-to place for legal betting on the NFL and all fantasy sports. Let’s look at the current industry trends to understand why this matters:

• The sports betting industry ballooned into a $114.2B money machine in 2024. 
• The Business Research Company report pegs the growth at a CAGR of 5.4% to $153.71B in 2029. 
• A Nerdwallet survey found that 3 in 10 Americans planned to spend more on sports betting this year than in 2024.

ESPN is positioning itself right at the center of it. The broadcast giant already has ESPN Bet, and having RedZone under its belt aligns with that strategy. On top of it, ESPN secures the exclusive right to more NFL content than ever, including hugely popular on-demand shows like Good Morning Football and The Insiders. 

There is little doubt what it would mean for traditional cable providers and those who still rely on cable for major sports coverage. The providers might lose out on another money-generating event from their hands. As for the fans, it will probably mean an increase in coverage cost. 

It’s part of ESPN’s bigger strategy before launching its first Direct-to-Consumer streaming service. But if the NFL has an equity stake in ESPN, it will raise some serious questions about media integrity and transparency. It remains to be seen how the NFL and ESPN tackle that.