The ESPN-ACC relationship will continue for 9 more years; the US Open is expanding to an opening Sunday; and Peacock reports no subscriber growth last quarter.
ESPN picks up ACC option through ’36
ESPN is expected to exercise its option to extend its contract with the Atlantic Coast Conference through 2036. ESPN.com was first to report. A February 1 deadline was approaching that would have resulted in the contract ending in 2027. The move, which had been expected for months, brings some stability to the conference, which can now focus on securing its membership.
The current contract with ESPN, which began in 2016, puts ACC schools’ television revenue significantly behind those in the Big Ten and SEC, which remains a point of contention for some members. Two of the ACC’s most prominent football members — Florida State and Clemson — filed lawsuits against the conference last year in hopes of exiting the conference without paying massive exit fees. The extension moves the ACC closer to finalizing its new uneven revenue distribution model, in which individual schools would given extra revenue distributions for postseason performance and revenue generation. The two schools are expected to drop their lawsuits if the revenue distribution agreement is finalized.
As part of the agreement, the conference will schedule more games against independent Notre Dame for Florida State, Clemson, and Miami. Clemson and FSU are also asking the league to reduce the penalty for exiting the grant of rights after 2031, which is when the TV contracts for the Big Ten, SEC and Big 12 expire.
US Open expanding to opening Sunday
The United States Tennis Association announced Thursday it will expand the US Open to 15 days, moving the start of the tournament back to Sunday instead of the typical Monday start. The 2025 tournament will begin on Sunday, August 24. The change follows similar expansions by the French Open and Australian Open. The first round will be expanded to stretch over three days, Sunday through Tuesday, with the second round beginning Wednesday and the rest of the tournament following the typical format.
No details about television coverage were announced. ABC typically airs the final of the Little League World Series the Sunday before Labor Day weekend, and ESPN usually carries high school football before Sunday Night Baseball in primetime.
Peacock flat in Q4
Comcast’s year-end earnings report indicates Peacock, which added 3 million paid subscribers in 2024 Q3 surrounding the Summer Olympics and an NFL exclusive, added no new paid subscribers in Q4, remaining flat at 36 million subscribers. Peacock also only lost $1.8 billion in adjusted EBITDA in 2024, its least unprofitable year since 2021.
Peacock will begin televising exclusive NBA games in October with the hope of increasing its subscriber count.
