Clemson, Florida State Could End ACC Lawsuits Under Revised ESPN Deal

Florida State and Clemson could be on the path to settling their lawsuits against the ACC as part of a revised revenue-sharing system under the conference’s media-rights deal with ESPN.

On Thursday afternoon, ESPN and the ACC announced the network has agreed to pick up the option on its contract to continue as the conference’s sole broadcast partner through 2036. If the option had been declined, the ESPN-ACC deal would have expired in 2027. There was a Feb. 1 deadline.

When the ACC added Cal, Stanford, and SMU last year, ESPN increased its rights fee which makes up the majority of the revenue the conference annually distributes to its members. Notably, Cal and Stanford agreed to take reduced payments, which amount to $30 million each year for other schools, and SMU is not receiving any media money.

The key part of the new agreement could be that a percentage of the ACC’s TV revenue will be included in a “brand” fund, according to multiple reports, including ESPN, which would then be distributed to schools that annually generate the most revenue for the conference in football and men’s and women’s basketball. Florida State and Clemson would be expected to drop their lawsuits if the agreement is finalized.

How We Got Here

In December 2023, Florida State and the ACC sued and countersued each other to determine whether the Seminoles could leave the conference without paying an almost $600 million exit fee.

In March 2024, Clemson filed a lawsuit against the ACC to ascertain whether the conference’s Grant of Rights (which binds schools to a conference for the lifespan of its media contract) was legally enforceable. The ACC countersued Clemson shortly afterward.

That litigation has remained unresolved as conference realignment has hit the nation and the College Football Playoff expanded to 12 teams.