ESPN Picks Up Option to Extend Contract to Televise ACC Games Through 2036

ESPN has officially extended its contract with the ACC to televise games through 2036. In 2016, ESPN signed a 20-year contract that granted them exclusive broadcasting rights to ACC sporting events, leading to the creation of the ACC Network in 2019. This contract also stipulated that if Notre Dame decided to join a conference between 2016 and 2036, it would have to be the ACC. According to the original agreement, ESPN was to annually provide approximately $300 million in revenue sharing to the ACC.

Initially, the $300 million was to be distributed equally among all conference members. However, this equal revenue sharing model caused dissatisfaction within the conference, as some schools believed it was unfair. Notably, FSU and Clemson, arguing that they contributed more substantially to the revenue generated for ESPN, filed lawsuits against the conference, demanding a larger share of the pie and the flexibility to leave before 2036.

In response, the ACC adjusted their revenue sharing plan in 2023 with a ‘Success Initiative’ that rewards schools based on television ratings, making the College Football Playoffs, and their brands’ revenue contribution to ESPN. Despite these changes, FSU and Clemson continued their lawsuits, still dissatisfied with the revenue they received compared to top schools in the SEC and Big Ten.

The contract with ESPN, described as a 20-year agreement, included an option for ESPN to opt out after the first ten years. Without exercising this option by February 1st, their contract would have ended in 2027. By choosing to extend, ESPN has committed to the full 20-year term. Importantly, ESPN held the option to opt out, not the conference.

While the details of the extension aren’t public at this point, here is what ESPN is hearing:

Multiple athletic directors told ESPN this could also involve using the ACC’s relationship with Notre Dame to strategically create more games against the conference’s top-tier teams. Earlier this month, Notre Dame athletic director Pete Bevacqua said he was open to playing more games against Clemson in the future. Notre Dame currently plays five to six regular-season football games against the ACC annually and is a member of the ACC in all other sports.

Under the proposed plan, a percentage of the ACC’s television revenue would be included in a ‘brand’ fund, and that money would then be distributed to schools that annually generate the most revenue for the conference in football and men’s and women’s basketball — with Clemson, Florida State, Miami and North Carolina likely at the top of the pyramid, sources told ESPN.

Should that agreement be finalized — something sources said is not imminent but was closely tied to the ESPN option — Clemson and Florida State would be expected to drop their lawsuits.

The new brand distribution fund would be in addition to the ACC’s ‘success initiatives,’ which the league approved in 2023. That pool of money is funded via revenue from the expanded College Football Playoff and additional payouts from ESPN that derive from the conference adding new members Stanford, California, and SMU in 2024. SMU agreed to forgo its TV revenue for its first nine years in the ACC in exchange for an invitation to the conference, while Cal and Stanford agreed to take a 30% share.

The ACC’s success initiatives, which went into place this year, provide additional revenue to schools that play in the postseason. The brand initiatives would also be accessible to any ACC school, though the biggest names would have a clear leg up. Specific metrics have not been finalized.

Between the brand and success initiatives, it is expected that the ACC schools that maximize both revenue streams could close the gap with Big Ten and SEC schools to as little as a few million annually. (ACC)