Pac-12 Conference: coming to a TV near you

Sources have told ESPN’s Heather Dinich that the media rights deal for the Pac-12 will be announced soon. While the Pac-12 will hold their annual media days July 20-21, the deal is not expected to be announced on those dates. Since UCLA and USC have left the Pac-12 for the Big Ten, the remaining 10 teams and Pac-12 leadership have had a hard time finding a partner. 

The Current State of the Pac-12

Currently, ESPN and Fox have an ongoing relationship with the Pac-12 until July 1, 2024, when the fiscal year begins on the NCAA calendar. The average combined value of the deal between the two networks is 250 million dollars annually. Doing the math including UCLA and USC each team receives around 21 million dollars per year.

During the 2022 season, the Pac-12 tried to renew its deal with ESPN and FOX but failed. Instead, the Big-12 conference jumped ahead and extended its relationship with ESPN. That deal is estimated to be worth about 32 million dollars for each team.

Ever since that deal, the Pac-12 has had to search around for people that would be interested in broadcasting games. In the middle of the 2022 season, it was reported that CW might be in the works to broadcast Pac-12 games. Currently, CW broadcasts LIV Golf and has just inked a deal to also broadcast ACC games as well. 

What would the Pac-12 TV deal look like?

Going back to Dinich, the source told her that they believe that this deal will be similar to the ones for the ACC and BIG 12. So what would that look like for the PAC 12?

As I stated above the Big-12 is currently broadcasted on ESPN and FOX. With ESPN being included the Big-12 has “Big-12 Now”. Some games are shown exclusively on that network which is only available on ESPN+. Therefore, some of the games would be on streaming services, which would be available for pay or free trial. Going with that option could bring in millions more to each institution.

The ACC TV deal

The Atlantic Coastal Conference (ACC) on the other hand has a little bit of a different deal. The ACC signed a deal with ESPN a number of years ago which brings each school roughly 35-38 million dollars per year. In addition to the games on ESPN, the ACC has its own network in which it can show a multitude of events.

The ACC recently signed a deal with CW to broadcast football and basketball through 2027. That brings each school even more additional money.

If the deal for the Pac-12 is up to par with either the Big-12 or ACC it looks like some sort of streaming service or network will be included with it.

Why does this matter?

If the Pac-12 wants to stay intact and not lose additional teams then it will need a media deal. Colorado, Arizona, Arizona State, and others have already been in contact with other conferences. The Pac-12 has publicly endorsed each school for remaining patient during these tough times.

How long can they remain patient? Only time will tell.

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