ESPN and TNT Sports have entered into a 5-year sublicensing agreement for selected College Football Playoff games allowing the Warner Bros. Discovery subsidiary to broadcast from ESPN.
TNT will showcase two first-round playoff games commencing later this year and extending into 2025. Furthermore, TNT will include two quarterfinal games each year beginning in 2026 and throughout the agreement. Additionally, across its networks ESPN will retain the broadcast rights for all other College Football Playoff games, encompassing the annual CFP National Championship Game and will maintain responsibility for managing the sponsorship program associated with the presentation of the CFP.
Luis Silberwasser, Chairman and CEO, of TNT Sports, said, “We’re delighted to reach this agreement with ESPN, providing TNT Sports the opportunity to showcase these College Football Playoff games on our platforms for years to come.”
With the addition of college football, TNT Sports marks a significant move for the network amidst uncertainty surrounding its longstanding NBA broadcasting rights. However, as Disney-ESPN, Amazon, and NBCUniversal negotiate rights deals TNT Sports faces potential challenges with nearly four decades of NBA coverage under its belt. Notably, for NCAA March Madness Turner has established itself in college basketball through its partnership with Paramount-CBS. While Max is currently complimentary for subscribers under TNT’s sports add-on to its flagship streaming service, it’s anticipated to transition into a paid tier shortly. The inclusion of College Football Playoff games is expected to bolster this initiative.
Rosalyn Durant, ESPN EVP, of programming & acquisitions, said that the company is “pleased to sublicense to TNT Sports a select number of early round games of the College Football Playoff, an event we’ve helped to grow – alongside the CFP – into one of the preeminent championships. We’re confident in the reach and promotion that this new agreement will provide as we enter the new, expanded playoff era.”
Set to commence on December 20 this year, under the expanded format, the top four conference champions will be seeded 1-4 and granted byes in the first round. The first round will entail four games played at home campus venues, featuring teams seeded 5-8 hosting teams seeded 9-12. The national championship game is slated for January 20, 2025.