United States: NFL in "advanced talks" to acquire part of the ESPN group (press)

The National Football League is reportedly in "advanced talks" with US media and entertainment conglomerate The Walt Disney Company to acquire a minority stake in the US pay-TV group ESPN, according to several American media reports on 14/01/2024.

Under a possible deal, ESPN would take control of NFL Media, while the North American league would obtain shares in the television group in exchange. NFL Media includes the official NFL website, the television channels NFL Network and NFL RedZone, NFL Films and the OTT platform NFL+.

Bob Iger, CEO of The Walt Disney Company, and James Pitaro, CEO of ESPN, had met with representatives of the NFL, NBA and MLB to discuss the possible sale of a stake in ESPN in July 2023, according to US financial news channel CNBC on 21/07/2023. "Selling a minority stake in ESPN to the leagues could mitigate future rights payments, allowing Disney to better compete with the big balance sheets of Apple, Google and Amazon," said CNBC at the time.

• Founded in 1975, the ESPN group was acquired by Disney in 1996 for $19bn. It is today 80% owned by The Walt Disney…