Pac-12, CBS Sports agree to long-term media rights deal
How did your country report this? Share your view in the comments.
Diverging Reports Breakdown
Pac-12, CBS Sports agree to long-term media rights deal
The Pac-12 announced a five-year deal with CBS Sports on Monday. The deal will see the network handle a significant portion of the conference’s football and men’s basketball broadcast rights from 2026-27 through 2030-31. Financial details were not disclosed. The league remains in the process of adding an eighth football-playing member — which it needs to maintain varying standards related to being an FBS conference and retaining its automatic bid to the NCAA postseason. The first of two games under the terms of the 2025 agreement include the Apple Cup between Washington and Washington State on Sept. 20.
Octagon served as the Pac-12’s exclusive media rights consultant in the process.
Key pieces to the partnership between the Pac-12 and CBS Sports include:
— Annual football championship game on CBS and streamed live on Paramount+.
— Annual men’s basketball tournament championship game on CBS and Paramount+.
— At least three regular season football games on CBS and Paramount+ each season.
— At least three regular season men’s basketball games on CBS and Paramount+ each season.
The agreement comes on the heels of the Pac-12’s stopgap media deal for the 2025 season that will see The CW take on nine of 13 games within the package, while ESPN and CBS will broadcast two games apiece.
CBS Sports’ two games under the terms of the 2025 agreement include the Apple Cup between Washington and Washington State on Sept. 20 and the first of two matchups between Oregon State and Washington State on Nov. 1 in Corvallis, Ore.
The Pac-12 and CBS declined to share the exact number of games that will be included in the longer term package as the league remains in the market for other partners, along with ongoing fluidity regarding the Pac-12’s membership.
Total game inventory could change, for example, if it added more than one new member or if it changed its scheduling format.
What does CBS partnership mean for the the Pac-12?
Monday’s news is a significant moment in the continued rebuilding of the Pac-12 following the league’s functional implosion amid the latest swath of realignment.
The media rights deal — and the phased approach the league has taken — is semi-novel and allows Commissioner Teresa Gould flexibility to continue to add partners beyond just CBS.
It’s expected the Pac-12 will add at least another handful of broadcast partners related to varying subpackages of programming across linear and streaming in the weeks to come.
The league also remains in the process of adding an eighth football-playing member — which it needs to maintain varying standards related to being an FBS conference and retaining its automatic bid to the NCAA postseason.
Texas State has reportedly been the focus of realignment talks in recent weeks, though if/when that might come together remains to be seen.
The new-look Pac-12 will include original members Oregon State and Washington State, along with Mountain West imports Fresno State, Utah State, Boise State, Colorado State and San Diego State. Gonzaga, too, will be added as a non-football playing member.