TNT has reached an agreement with ESPN to broadcast the first games of the College Football Playoffs starting in the 2024 season, as its NBA rights are at stake.
TNT Sports announced the news on Wednesday of a five-year agreement with ESPN through the 2028 season. Under the agreement, TNT will sublicense the rights to ESPN to broadcast two first-round playoff games for each of the next five seasons. TNT will then acquire the rights to broadcast two quarterfinal matches each year for the remainder of the agreement beginning with the 2026 season.
The news comes ahead of the newly adopted 12-team CFP format that will be implemented for the first time after the 2024 regular season. As part of the new format, ESPN secured an extension as the exclusive owner of the rights to CFP broadcasts through the season 2031 with a rights fee that averages $1.3 billion per season. It now shares those rights with TNT.
In the new format, the four highest-ranked teams will receive byes in the first round. Teams ranked 5th through 12th will compete in first round games. The broadcasts of those four games will be distributed between ESPN and TNT. Starting in 2026, the next four quarterfinal matches will also be split between the two networks. ESPN will then exclusively broadcast the national semifinal and championship games. Terms of the agreement were not announced.
What will TNT broadcasts be like in the future?
The new deal comes as TNT’s NBA rights are at risk, a development that could significantly impact the network’s on-air product. TNT Sports relies on its coverage of the NBA, and much of its broadcast talent is focused on covering the league.
By a report from Sports Business Journal On Wednesday, the NBA formalizes media rights deals with Disney/ESPN, NBC and Amazon., a fact that puts TNT’s rights in the NBA at risk beyond the end of its contract with the league until the 2024-25 season.
According to the report, TNT’s parent company, Warner Bros. Discovery, will have the option to match NBC’s offer in an effort to retain its NBA rights, an option that could reportedly lead to legal action involving Embattled CEO David Zaslav.
Losing the rights to the NBA would presumably mean the end of the beloved studio show “Inside the NBA” and open questions about the professional fates of its hosts Ernie Johnson, Charles Barkley, Kenny Smith and Shaquille O’Neal, as well as the game’s announcers. Like Kevin. Harlan and Brian Anderson.
