It wasn’t that long ago that ESPN was paying more for its NFL media deal than any other broadcast rightsholder — but still being treated like the league’s little brother. 

That all changed when the NFL signed its latest set of media contracts totalling more than $110 billion. 

ESPN’s $2.7 billion annual fee is still higher than the NFL’s other broadcast partners, but the Disney-owned network is finally getting its fair share of the football pie. This year, ESPN and ABC will air 21 NFL games in primetime — a record for Disney and the second-most ever for a single company in one NFL season.

The rights fee isn’t the only big spending ESPN is doing, either. Between announcers Joe Buck and Troy Aikman, plus the “ManningCast” duo of Peyton and Eli, the network is reportedly paying around $50 million for its “Monday Night Football” broadcasters.

While the costs are enormous, ESPN is already seeing the benefits of being in the NFL’s good graces. Week 1’s New York Jets-Buffalo Bills telecast set an “MNF” record with 22.64 million viewers. Last season, “MNF” averaged 13.789 million viewers across 17 games, down 2% from 2021. At its most recent low point in 2017, it averaged less than 11 million viewers.

Monday night kicks off two straight weeks of “MNF” doubleheaders on ESPN and ABC. In another sign the ESPN-NFL relationship is thriving once again, “MNF” gets a Super Bowl LVII rematch between the Kansas City Chiefs and Philadelphia Eagles in Week 11 — a high-profile broadcast typically awarded to NBC’s “Sunday Night Football” or a premier Sunday late-afternoon slot on Fox or CBS.

With the NFL seemingly hotter than ever, ESPN has even held talks with the league — among others — about acquiring an equity stake in the network.

One of the major agencies handling the commercial business of college sports has completed a large-scale recapitalization and ownership shift, providing some much-needed stability.

The Texas-based Learfield, which works with more than 1,200 collegiate institutions, will transfer its majority ownership to a trio of private equity firms — Clearlake Capital Group, Charlesbank Capital Partners, and Fortress Investment Group — injecting $150 million in new equity investment and reducing the company’s outstanding debt by more than $600 million. 

Learfield’s prior owners — sports and entertainment giant Endeavor and private equity firms Silver Lake and Atairos — will remain minority partners. 

Prior to the deal, Learfield’s long-term survival was in question as it faced $1.1 billion in maturing debt this year.

“The future was always bright. What was in question was, ‘OK, how does the company get on the other side of the gauntlet of managing these debt maturities?’” Learfield president and CEO Cole Gahagan told Front Office Sports. “From Day 1, we were mission-focused on doing that … out of [bankruptcy] court.”

Learfield’s operations span a wide range of areas including multimedia rights sales, ticketing, merchandising, digital media, and name, image, and likeness (NIL) efforts.

“We now turn back to our core principles … and this team at Learfield has done a phenomenal job getting five, 10 years ahead of where our industry is going and putting the foundational pieces in place,” Gahagan said.

Further Advance Of Private Equity

Though Learfield previously had private equity ties — as do other major firms operating in college sports such as Playfly Sports and Legends — this latest deal advances an emerging industry trend. 

“With the rapid pace of change and evolution in college athletics, there are a number of businesses that are trying to chase every conceivable opportunity that comes along with that evolution and change,” Gahagan said. “But Learfield has been very deliberate and very patient about what we go after.” 

BOULDER, Colorado — There was a sense of disbelief in the Rocky Mountain State over the weekend. 

Local media and others close to the Colorado football team couldn’t wrap their heads around Boulder being not only the epicenter of college football — but also the envy of nearly everyone in sports and entertainment.

Celebrities in town and on the sidelines during Colorado’s 43-35 double-overtime win over Colorado State — the first night game of the Coach Prime era — included actor Dwayne “The Rock” Johnson, rappers Lil Wayne and Offset, NBA stars Kawhi Leonard and Kyle Lowry, Portland Trail Blazers head coach Chauncey Billups, and Rob Gronkowski, who was on duty for Fox Sports.  

ESPN’s factory of travel shows, anchored by its crown jewel “College GameDay,” combined with the return of Fox Sports’ “Big Noon Kickoff,” lured the Hollywood figures to the networks’ pregame programs competing for students on campus — and more importantly viewers on TV.

Colorado head coach Deion Sanders hit ESPN first on Saturday morning before taking a quick golf cart ride over to the Fox set less than a half a mile away. 

“We probably enjoy it more than the competition might,” Rob Stone, host of “Big Noon Kickoff,” told Front Office Sports of Fox’s battle with ESPN’s “College GameDay.”

ABC will air No. 19 Colorado’s first Pac-12 game of the season at No. 10 Oregon on Saturday. And while nothing is confirmed yet, anticipation is building for yet another double dip from “GameDay” and “Big Noon” on Sept. 30 for No. 5 USC’s visit to Colorado, which will be broadcast by Fox.

Bigger Than Football

Throughout the weekend, the Coach Prime hype extended beyond new national media interest — like “60 Minutes” interviewing Sanders for its season debut on Sunday. Various athletic recruits were being chauffeured around campus, taking in the mania, and athletes from Colorado’s teams outside of football were reveling in the spectacle. 

“Campus was electric today,” Sanders said after the game. “Don’t dismiss the fact that we’re always recruiting. So when those high school kids who do our recruiting trips see this kind of stuff it’s great. One of the big fellas just said hey man it’s different. This is straight up different here.”

The Ottawa Senators appear to be on pace to officially welcome the team’s new owner ahead of the NHL preseason beginning this weekend.

In June, Michael Andlauer, a part-owner of the Montreal Canadiens, finalized an agreement to purchase the Senators from the estate of late team owner Eugene Melnyk for $950 million — a record sale price for an NHL team. Last month, the NHL’s executive committee greenlit the transaction, leaving just the league’s board of governors for final approval.

That last remaining step will be taken this week, according to the Ottawa Sun, with Andlauer potentially being formally introduced to the media on Wednesday. The Senators begin preseason play on Sept. 24 against the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Andlauer may have as many as eight limited partners filling out his new ownership group, per the Sun, including a 10% stake remaining with Melnyk’s daughters, Anna and Olivia. Additionally, Andlauer could end up netting $120 million from selling his reported 10% stake in the Canadiens.

Hitting The Ice

The conclusion of the Senators sale brings an end to a wild and lengthy process that included interest from bidders like Hollywood star Ryan Reynolds, rapper Snoop Dogg, Sacramento Kings owner Vivek Ranadivé, and entrepreneur Neko Sparks, who would have been the first Black owner in the NHL.

Melnyk died in March 2022 at the age of 62, and the Senators were put up for sale in November.