Big 12 reaches new media-rights deal with ESPN, Fox and it includes a big raise: report
The Big 12 knows its media-rights future.
Sports Business Journal reported Sunday that the Big 12 has reached deals with ESPN and Fox Sports on a six-year agreement worth $2.28 billion, which works out to $380 million annually — or about $31.7 million for each of the 12 schools — starting in 2025-26.
That year, the Big 12 will be without Texas and Oklahoma for the first time. Newcomers Houston, Cincinnati, Brigham Young and Central are scheduled to join the conference next year.
The Big 12’s current deal pays the league $220 million annually through 2024-25.
Last year, the conference delivered a record $43 million in revenue to each school, which includes media rights, College Football Playoff, NCAA Tournament and other payouts. With the new media-rights deal and the expected expansion of the CFP to 12 teams, the per school distribution could approach $50 million in the next few years.
The agreement is a victory for the Big 12 and new commissioner Brett Yormark, who has been on the job since Aug. 1. Yormark got a deal done before the league’s exclusive negotiating window opens in February 2024.
Highlights of the deal:
- ESPN will get the top four football picks each season, six of the top eight picks, eight of the top 12 and 12 of the top 20.
- ESPN gets the rights to the Big 12 football championship game and the basketball tournament title game.
- The Fox package includes 26 football games that will run on Fox and FS1. Fox Sports also will broadcast Big 12 basketball games.
This story was originally published October 30, 2022 at 12:27 PM.