The NFL has announced a number of TV-related changes Wednesday, including a later start for Sunday Divisional Round games. Also: the NBA is open to earlier starts for West Coast games; NFL Network is getting into college football; ESPN is opening a Las Vegas studio.
Sunday Divisional Round games get later start
The NFL announced Wednesday that it is changing the kickoff times for Sunday Divisional Round playoff games to 3:00 and 6:30 PM ET, the same as for its conference championship games. The Sunday games previously kicked off at 1:00 and 4:30 PM ET. The league did not announce any changes to its Sunday Wild Card games, which also kick off at 1:00 and 4:30.
The NFL also announced that it will relax the rule requiring that a doubleheader game be blacked out in markets where the home team is playing during the singleheader window. Previously, if the local team was playing in the 1:00 or 4:05 PM ET singleheader window, the corresponding doubleheader game (1:00 or 4:25) would be blacked out. The number of occasions in which a doubleheader game can compete with a local game will be capped at two, and the relaxing of the rule is a “one-year test.” [NFL.com 5.22, Philadelphia Inquirer 5.23]
NBA commissioner open to earlier West Coast starts
In a recent interview with NBC News, NBA commissioner Adam Silver expressed a willingness to start West Coast NBA games earlier in order to accommodate viewers in the Eastern time zone. Nationally televised NBA games played in the Pacific time zone generally start at 10:30 PM ET. Silver said the league and teams would discuss potential changes during the offseason. [Today.com 5.21 via Sports Business Daily 5.22]
NFL Network agrees to C-USA deal, could bid on MWC
The NFL announced Monday that it has reached a four-year media rights deal with Conference USA to televise ten football games per season. NFL Network, which carries the Senior Bowl and previously aired the Cactus and Texas bowls, will air the games at 3:30 PM ET on Saturdays. According to Sports Business Daily, NFL Network is replacing beIN Sports as one of the five Conference USA rights partners.
Sports Business Daily also reported that NFL Network is expected to bid on Mountain West media rights that would kick in with the 2020 season. [NFL PR 5.20; Sports Business Daily 5.21]
ESPN-branded Vegas studio to launch next year
ESPN announced last week that it has reached a partnership with casino owner Ceasars Entertainment that includes a new sports-betting focused, ESPN-branded studio in Las Vegas, set to launch next year. As part of the agreement, ESPN will begin integrating Ceasars data and branding into its content. [ESPN PR 5.14]
