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Since 2011, TNT has had broadcast rights to only one major college sports property: men’s March Madness. But in one year, the network has quietly amassed a portfolio of NCAA rights.
Over the summer, TNT Sports—which includes TNT, TBS, truTV, and Max—won the rights to a slate of College Football Playoff games, considered the crown jewel of college sports rights. It also struck new deals with the Mountain West and Big East, as well as high-profile non-conference basketball tournaments.
The biggest broadcasters in college sports, including ESPN and Fox, have spent several years competing for control. But TNT Sports is now the only network with a slice of the two biggest postseason properties.
“The NCAA, and college sports in general, has always been a priority for us,” Raphael Poplock, TNT Sports’ SVP of acquisitions, business development and partnerships, tells Front Office Sports. It finally has a robust portfolio to show for it.
As part of a deal between CBS and Warner Bros. Discovery, TNT has shown some of the most popular men’s basketball postseason games—from the first round all the way to the Final Four. When the rights to the expanded 12-team CFP came up for grabs, TNT’s parent company saw an opportunity in FBS football.
WBD was one of several having conversations with CFP leaders in the fall of 2023, FOS reported during negotiations. (It was also working on NBA rights negotiations, but a source told FOS at the time that the fate of the CFP rights were completely unrelated to the broadcaster’s fate with the NBA.)
Despite considerations for a multinetwork deal, ESPN won out, signing a $7.8 billion extension of its exclusive partnership to 2031–2032. But the deal allowed ESPN to sublicense some of the earlier-round games to another network. Poplock says TNT was on a short list to purchase a sublicense from ESPN. That’s likely because the network tries to position itself as everyone’s friend, Poplock explains, as evidenced by its shared men’s tournament rights.
In May, ESPN and TNT announced a deal that would allow TNT to broadcast two first-round CFP games in each of the next two upcoming playoffs and two quarterfinals starting in 2026.
“A property like the CFP sits on its own. It’s as compelling as any property in the U.S. when it comes to sports fandom,” Poplock says. “That was, frankly, something that was missing from our portfolio.”
To ensure the network would have the ability to broadcast FBS college football games all season, it signed a sublicensing deal with the Mountain West that was announced just a few weeks before this season—and the deal itself—began.
In July, TNT Sports announced it was unsuccessful in renewing its partnership with the NBA—a dispute that has escalated to New York State court, where WBD filed a lawsuit.
But although the pro basketball relationship is ending, the network has doubled down on its commitment to college basketball. (When FOS asked how the split with the NBA impacted college sports negotiations, Poplock did not directly comment, instead listing off the broadcaster’s portfolio and noting other new properties like NASCAR.)
Before the NBA breakup became official, the network announced a first-time college basketball partner in the Big East. Along with Fox and NBC, TNT Sports will be part of the conference’s next media package, broadcasting more than 50 men’s regular-season basketball games and 15 women’s games.
When the opportunity for the Big East came across his desk, Poplock says “we jumped at the opportunity almost immediately.”
The financial terms were not released publicly, though sources previously told FOS the deal was somewhere in the $55 million range. But by all accounts, getting a championship contender and multibid league at that price is a steal. Like the Mountain West, the Big East deal helps with “continuity” throughout the season for TNT—but it also gives the broadcaster rights to one of the best basketball leagues in the NCAA.
“I think we’re all big fans of the conference,” Poplock says. The value of the UConn men’s team, which just won back-to-back championships and is attempting a three-peat, is obvious. So is the dynasty of the women’s program. But he also suggested the league is sometimes “overlooked,” and they perhaps should have even deserved more men’s bids in the 2024 tournament.
TNT has even waded into the fall non-conference tournament slate. The network scored exclusive rights to an eight-team men’s tournament called the Players Era Festival, which has made headlines for its promise to deliver millions in NIL (name, image, and likeness) deals to players. It’s the first of its kind in the increasingly complicated NIL era.
“I think you have to embrace the chaos,” Poplock says. The network isn’t afraid of a tumultuous landscape ranging from looming potential changes and athlete compensation rules to conference realignment. (The Mountain West, one of TNT’s partners, is at the center of another seismic wave of realignment.)
Despite TNT Sports’ already robust portfolio, Poplock says the network may not be finished bidding on college sports. “We’re not going to be shy about … continuing to explore other opportunities that could bring more meat on the bones.”
