New details on the value of the ESPN-NFL deal finalized over the weekend; the NFL adds international games while television arrangements remain unknown; and some TNT Sports international brands and media rights will sit in the subsidiary containing WBD streaming and studio assets. Plus news on Super Bowl LX on NBC, the PGA TOUR, Kevin LeGrett and Paul Woods.
ESPN-NFL deal valued at “approximately $3 billion”
The Walt Disney Company said in an SEC filing Monday that the “estimated fair value” of its deal to acquire NFL Media assets is “approximately $3 billion,” and that the 10% stake that the NFL acquired in ESPN as part of the deal could at some point expand by an additional 4%. It was not clear what would trigger that expansion or when it might occur. Disney could also have the option to buy back the NFL’s stake in ESPN after July 2034 and exchange it for a ten-year note at 70% of the fair market price.
As part of the agreement, which closed over the weekend, ESPN acquired full ownership of the NFL Network and secured additional rights to NFL Media assets, including pay television distribution rights to the NFL RedZone channel. The company is also licensing three additional NFL games per season to air on NFL Network in a separate agreement with the league. With the NFL officially acquiring the minority equity stake in the network, indirect TWDC subsidiary ABC Inc. diminished its ownership stake in ESPN to 72% (from 80%), while Hearst Corporation moved to an 18% interest (from 20%).
“We’re really happy that we were able to close it when we did,” Disney CEO Bob Iger said on the company’s quarterly earnings call Monday. “That enables us to get started sooner than we actually had anticipated, and so the upcoming NFL season, which will end in ESPN’s first Super Bowl, is a huge opportunity for ESPN, not only in terms of its ability to manage the NFL Network and RedZone, but also with more NFL inventory, and we know how valuable that is.”
Disney reported that its 15-day carriage dispute with YouTube TV last fall resulted in its Sports segment losing $110 million in operating income. The Sports segment also registered a 2% YoY decline in subscription and affiliate fees, but a 10% rise in advertising compared to Q1 2025 helped bring total segment revenue ($4.9B) to a 1% gain. In other news, the company board is reportedly aligning on selecting Josh D’Amaro, chairman of Disney Parks, Experiences and Products, to succeed Iger as TWDC’s CEO, per Thomas Buckley of Bloomberg, although no decision has been formally announced.
NFL announces more international games, TV broadcasters to be determined
The NFL announced Monday that it will hold games in Paris, Mexico City and Madrid next season, with the Paris game marking the league’s first in France. At the moment, the NFL has announced nine international games for next season, including three in London and one each in the Melbourne, Australia; Munich, Germany; Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; and the three previously mentioned cities.
While NFL Network has generally aired International Series games in recent years, save for the Week 1 games from Brazil the past two seasons, the league-owned channel’s inventory is changing as part of its acquisition by ESPN. Four of the network’s seven games will come from ESPN’s existing 25-game inventory, with three additional windows licensed to ESPN by the league. The NFL will decide whether any or all of the seven games will consist of international matchups, Sports Media Watch has learned. Under this logic, NFL Network inventory could theoretically consist of zero to seven international games.
With four additional game windows available to sell on the open market, it is possible that the NFL could package together at least some portion of its International Series schedule, a possibility that has been addressed in recent years. NFL EVP/media distribution Hans Schroeder said last year that such a move would “make sense.”
NFL Network broadcast six international games last season, filling out the seven-game schedule reportedly required under its affiliate agreements with a Week 17 contest between the Houston Texans and Los Angeles Chargers.
Some TNT Sports brands, media rights to be owned by ‘New WBD’ subsidiary slated for Netflix merger
Warner Bros. Discovery will transfer some international TNT Sports brands and media rights to the streaming and studios division that is set to be acquired by Netflix, the company disclosed in a series of preliminary proxy statements. WBD said that TNT Sports Chile and TNT Sports Argentina, along with its ownership stake in the TNT Sports UK joint venture, would sit with in the “New WBD” subsidiary with WBD streaming and studio properties. Excluded are “the ‘TNT Sports’ trademark and related intellectual property.”
In addition, the subsidiary would have certain international rights to the English Premier League and FA Cup (Mexico), Champions League (Mexico and Brazil) and UFC (Andorra, the Netherlands, Italy, San Marino and Vatican City).
TNT, tbs, truTV and other channels within the WBD Global Networks segment will still be under the ownership of Discovery Global. The company will also hold the TNT Sports U.S. subscription application that will be available as a standalone streaming platform and bundle option with discovery+, as announced by WBD CFO Gunnar Wiedenfels last fall. Discovery Global is also going to have rights for World Wrestling Entertainment in Italy in addition to ownership of discovery+, TVN Player and the “Eurosport standalone app and website in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, excluding the United Kingdom” among other assets.
WBD has disclosed that Discovery Global will hold $17 billion of debt as of June 30 with the goal of reducing that $16.1 billion by year’s end. The Netflix deal would grant existing WBD stockholders shares of Discovery Global distributed “on a pro rata basis,” the value of which has been a point of contention as Paramount continues forward with its hostile bid.
Plus: Super Bowl LX on NBC, PGA TOUR, Kevin LeGrett, Paul Woods
- NBCUniversal has sold “a ‘handful’ of 30-second Super Bowl units for $10 million or more,” according to its chairman of global advertising and partnerships Mark Marshall. In an article written by Bill Bradley of AdWeek, Marshall added that most of the Super Bowl advertisers have also bought time in the Olympics.
- The PGA TOUR is partnering with ESPN and DraftKings to bring back its “Betcast” alternate presentation hosted by Jonathan Coachman for 12 events this season. A variety of contributors will appear as hosts and analysts across 400 hours of coverage during the PGA TOUR campaign that starts with the WM Phoenix Open later this week.
- Kevin LeGrett, who has been responsible for overseeing iHeartMedia’s sports assets as division president since July 2021, is now serving as chief business officer of Beasley Media Group. The company owns several sports talk radio stations, including 97.5 The Fanatic in Philadelphia, Pa. and 98.5 The Sports Hub in Boston, Ma., and LeGrett will be working with COO Brian Beasley as it aims to position itself for sustained success.
- Longtime Detroit Red Wings radio analyst Paul Woods is retiring from the broadcast following the season, according to a report by Ted Kulfan of The Detroit News. Woods is in his 40th season on the airwaves, and he has worked alongside play-by-play announcer Ken Kal for the last 31 years.
