ESPN, NFL In Advanced Talks On Agreement That Could Give League Stake In TV Giant

ESPN is reportedly in talks with the NFL to give the league a piece of the cable network.

According to The New York Post's Andrew Marchand, talks between the two parties are moving right along, with things reportedly being so far along that owners and the NFLPA have already been given a heads-up about them due to the revenue-sharing implications involved.

A deal would reportedly involve ESPN taking over the NFL's in-house media division, straightforwardly known as NFL Media. This includes NFL Films, as well as the NFL Network, NFL Red Zone, and NFL+.

In exchange, the NFL would be given equity in the Disney-owned sports network. As we all know, that business has been hurting over the last few years.

This sort of deal would have benefits for both sides.

Disney CEO Bob Iger made it clear that TV networks may not be at the core of the company's future. (Photo by Slaven Vlasic/Getty Images for The New York Times)

Disney Has Been Trying To Find A League Partner For ESPN Ahead Of Direct-To-Consumer Move

It was previously reported that ESPN had been in talks with not only the NFL but the NBA and MLB as well about taking stakes in the network. Additionally, there were talks between ESPN and Amazon, about a streaming partnership. That would also see the tech and e-commerce giant taking a piece of ESPN.

This isn't surprising as Disney CEO Bob Iger was open about the company's willingness to sell off TV properties like FX, ABC, and, of course, ESPN. This is due to Iger's view that these "may not be core to the company.”

Of course, things are especially dire on cable where subscribers are declining in a hurry. This means ESPN's revenue — which they then use to pay leagues for rights to broadcast games — is also declining.

The plan is for ESPN to go direct-to-consumer by 2025. That would allow consumers to purchase ESPN programming without a cable subscription. Sort of like, ESPN+ now, but with a fuller slate of offerings.

Part of that plan involves partnering with a league, and which better league to partner with than the biggest one in the world?

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