Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy will be on “Big Noon Kickoff” next season as part of a deal with Fox Sports; NBA commissioner Adam Silver discussed local media rights; and Drew Brees will reportedly serve as an analyst on Netflix Christmas Day coverage of the NFL. Plus additional news about Peacock, David Zaslav, Michele Steele and Scott Hanson.
Portnoy, Barstool Sports, officially strike “wide-ranging” deal with Fox Sports
Barstool Sports founder Dave Portnoy announced that the company has reached a three-year deal with Fox Sports under which he will be making live, weekly appearances on the “Big Noon Kickoff” college football pregame show. In addition, the company is going to have a daily morning program on FS1 which he described as a Barstool breakfast/wake-up program that will incorporate different characters.
Portnoy revealed that he is going to be on Monday editions of the new show, which is expected to debut before the first episode of “Big Noon Kickoff,” which takes place from Columbus, Ohio on Sat., Aug. 30 as the Ohio State Buckeyes face the Texas Longhorns. Furthermore, he explained that Fox will be building a studio for the show emanating from Chicago and that it will encompass “whatever is happening and relevant to our world.” The show is going to utilize Barstool talent, who will be making appearances on different days of the week.
“This has the potential to be really good for both parties,” Portnoy said during an appearance on The Unnamed Show. “They want our audience, but they know what audience we have, and we’re going to try to come up with a bunch of things with them and it’s a wide-ranging relationship.”
Outside of “Big Noon Kickoff,” Barstool has its own preexisting college football program that will now precede “Big Noon Kickoff” on Barstool channels, Tubi and the Fox Sports digital platforms. Moreover, the two companies will work together on co-produced shows and content on the digital side. Portnoy said conversations between the sides have been ongoing for five to six months and that Fox Sports chief executive officer and executive producer Eric Shanks traveled to meet with him for three hours.
Adam Silver acknowledges potential NBA local TV solutions
Tom Friend of Sports Business Journal reported this week that “all signs” are pointing to the NBA launching a national streaming RSN prior to the 2027-28 season, when up to 20 teams could be contractually permitted to join such an entity. During a press conference after the NBA Board of Governors meeting, league commissioner Adam Silver referenced the need to determine whether the NBA will settle on “an aggregated solution” or a hybrid model that satisfies teams who want to be part of larger networks or independent with their broadcasts.
“I personally think it’s potentially the best value potential in all of sports,” Silver said of local rights. “When I look at what the market has said about the value of national games, there’s no reason that our teams shouldn’t be commanding on a relative basis that same value on a local basis. It’s just that at least up to now, streamers largely have not been in the local business, but I believe that’s going to change as well.””
Silver acknowledged the decline in local and regional television due to cord cutting and shrinking linear distribution, noting that some teams have “taken significant cuts in regional television” and emphasizing the importance of solving the issue.
Brees reportedly returning to Netflix NFL Christmas broadcast
Former NBC NFL analyst Drew Brees will serve as a game analyst for Christmas Day NFL coverage on Netflix, according to Andrew Marchand of The Athletic. Brees took part in the Netflix studio pregame show from Los Angeles last year alongside Kay Adams, Robert Griffin III, Mina Kimes and Manti Te’o, and he also worked with Scott Hanson on the international broadcast.
Netflix is entering the second season of a three-year deal in which it is presenting games on Christmas Day. The network will be broadcasting a doubleheader of matchups — the Dallas Cowboys and Washington Commanders at 1 p.m. EST; and the Detroit Lions against the Minnesota Vikings at 4:30 p.m. EST.
Brees was briefly considered an heir apparent to NBC’s Cris Collinsworth during his brief stint with the network from 2020-22.
Plus: Peacock, David Zaslav, Michele Steele, Scott Hanson
- Peacock, the OTT streaming service from Comcast-owned NBCUniversal, is raising prices for its premium and plus subscription tiers by $3 per month. The company is also going to be adding a select tier featuring current seasons of shows on NBC and Bravo in addition to library programming.
- In a court filing following a lawsuit by Warner Bros. Discovery investors in the Southern District of New York, company chief executive officer David Zaslav and chief financial officer Gunnar Wiedenfels are arguing that the case does not have merit, Michael McCann of Sportico reports. The memorandum cites the ubiquity of coverage, claiming “the negotiations were being monitored obsessively by the media, the industry, and the public,” and that the outcome was uncertain but would have financial impact both on Warner Bros. Discovery and the league.
- Michele Steele is departing ESPN after 14 years with the company, Sports Media Watch has confirmed. Over the years, Steele has reported from football and basketball games, anchored “SportsCenter” and taken part in podcasts.
- Longtime “NFL RedZone” host Scott Hanson, who reached a new multiyear contract to continue anchoring the Sunday whiparound program, said in a recent appearance on the “SI Media with Jimmy Traina” podcast that there was a time when he thought, “I don’t know if this is going to happen. … It was not my intention to kind of go that direction, but you have to be willing for that eventuality or that possibility.”
