NFL in talks with Paramount to add $1 billion to deal

NFL and paramount skydanceCNBC reports that contract renewal negotiations are beginning to take shape regarding a deal that would keep the league’s Sunday games on CBS.

NFL and CBS executives are negotiating price increases at the midpoint of the bid-to-buy spread, according to two people familiar with the negotiations who asked not to be identified because the negotiations are private. CBS currently pays an average of about $2.1 billion annually for Sunday afternoon games, CNBC previously reported. A 50% increase would mean CBS would pay more than $3 billion in its next contract.

In exchange for the increased revenue, the NFL will eliminate the opt-out clause in Paramount’s original contract, which was part of an 11-year deal that runs through the 2033-34 season, after the 2029-30 season. That clause would have given the league the chance to exit early.

Starting next season, CBS will begin paying new fees for the same game package for the next eight years.

Paramount’s adjusted forecast for 2026 earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization is $3.6 billion. What if Paramount merged? warner bros discovery Paramount Chief Financial Officer Dennis Cinelli told investors this month that the combined company expects adjusted EBITDA of $18 billion, subject to regulatory approval.

“We have a tremendous relationship with the NFL, and we expect that to continue for the foreseeable future,” Paramount CEO David Ellison told CNBC earlier this month. “They are one of our most important partners and we just had a historic season working with them, so we plan on them continuing to be one of our most important partners. And as you know, during the ongoing negotiations, we are not in a position to comment. We promise to share something as soon as we have something to say.”

comcastNBCUniversal, Amazon prime video and fox The contract also includes an opt-out clause for 2029-30. disneyESPN and ABC until 2031.

The league chose to begin negotiations with Paramount’s CBS ahead of other media partners because a change of control clause stemming from Skydance Media’s acquisition of Paramount Global allows the NFL to break out of the deal by 2027.

The NFL could potentially negotiate with Fox after CBS because the terms of the deal would be similar — both companies own the Sunday afternoon package, one person familiar with the matter said.

Fox currently pays about $2.2 billion for its game package, slightly more than CBS, according to people familiar with the matter. Fox “certainly continues to have a mutually beneficial relationship” with the NFL, but has not yet had “significant conversations” about renewing the contract, CEO Lachlan Murdoch said at Morgan Stanley’s Technology, Media and Telecoms conference earlier this month.

The NFL has not entered into significant discussions with Amazon, NBC or Disney, according to people familiar with the matter. It’s unclear whether the league intends to push for a similar 50% increase for all three of these packages.

Some executives at NBC and Disney believe that the relative strength of their packages (Sunday Night Football and Monday Night Football) has waned in recent years as the NFL has offered better Thursday Night Football games to Amazon, according to people familiar with the matter.

ESPN already pays $2.7 billion for Monday Night Football. A 50% increase would mean ESPN would pay more than $4 billion for the package, but a person familiar with the matter said Disney would likely balk at that number.

The timing and scope of the NFL’s new deals could have a significant impact on the value of other sports rights in the coming years.

The NHL currently has television deals with Disney and Warner Bros. Discovery that expire after the 2028 season. NHL commissioner Gary Bettman has had numerous talks about renewing his contract before the NFL, two people familiar with the matter said. Still, he will likely have to wait until Paramount’s deal to acquire WBD closes before signing a new deal.

“As with any ongoing relationship, we always talk about the future, but from our standpoint, that’s not in the context of the NFL,” NHL spokesman Jon Weinstein said.

Murdoch said last month that Fox would have to “rebalance” its sports portfolio if it paid the NFL.

Versant CEO Mark Lazarus said earlier this month that the company is “preparing for changes in the sports landscape” given the NFL’s significant costs. He said this could allow Versant, which owns USA Network and other cable channels, to buy rights to sports such as the NHL and MLB that it “might not have been able to get involved with otherwise.”

Disclosure: Versant is the parent company of CNBC.