Big Ten Conference Announces Massive Rights Deal with CBS, FOX, NBC; Games to Air on Peacock, Paramount+
The Big Ten just reached a massive rights deal with three broadcasting partners — and ESPN isn’t among the group.
On Thursday, the Big Ten Conference announced the details of its new media rights agreement with three distribution partners — CBS, FOX, and NBC — that will begin in 2023 and run through the 2029-30 season. The statement detailed what each broadcast partner will air throughout the deal but provided no specific dollar amount, although the Wall Street Journal reported that the deal came in at $7.5 billion over the seven-year term.
In 2023, CBS will air seven football games and both regular season and postseason men’s basketball action, along with the Big Ten Women’s Basketball Tournament Championship Game appearing on CBS for the first time. The Big Ten Men’s Basketball Tournament semifinals and final will continue the tradition of airing on CBS, which they have done for 25 years. In 2024, CBS will air up to 15 regular-season football games per season, including an annual Black Friday game in the afternoon.
FOX will continue to televise football and men’s basketball games throughout the season, though the network now has the option to air other sports during the year as well. The statement touts FOX’s “Big Noon Saturday” block but gave no further information, so expect more of the same Big Ten action from FOX. The statement also mentioned that FS1 would continue to air football, men’s and women’s basketball, as well as other sports.
The new kid on the block is NBC, which will produce 14 to 16 games on broadcast television each season as it introduces college football fans to “Big Ten Saturday Night”. Each Big Ten game on NBC broadcast will also be simul-streamed on Peacock.
CBS, FOX, and NBC will combine efforts to televise the seven Big Ten Football Championship Games during the term. CBS will get the title game in 2024 and 2028, NBC will get it in 2026, while FOX will air the game in all odd-numbered years (‘23, ‘25, ‘27, and ‘29.)
The deal will also provide Big Ten action for CBS’s streaming service Paramount+ and NBC’s Peacock. Every CBS Big Ten football and basketball broadcast will also be streamed on Paramount+, while each Big Ten game on NBC broadcast will also be simul-streamed on Peacock.
Peacock will also play host to exclusive Big Ten football and basketball games each season, as eight regular-season football games will appear on the platform along with as many as 47 regular-season men’s basketball games (32 conference and 15 non-conference) and 30 regular-season women’s basketball games (20 conference and 10 non-conference).
“The Big Ten Conference media rights agreements are more than just dollars and deals. They are a mechanism to provide stability and maximum exposure for our student-athletes, member institutions and partners during these uncertain times in collegiate athletics,” Big Ten Conference Commissioner Kevin Warren said. “We are very grateful to our world-class media partners for recognizing the strength of the Big Ten Conference brand and providing the incredible resources we need for our student-athletes to compete at the very highest levels, and to achieve their academic and athletics goals.”