The Big Ten Conference announced on Thursday a new seven-year media rights agreement with CBS, Fox and NBC that begins next year and extends through the 2029-30 season.
The agreement, which according to multiple media outlets is worth around $1.2 billion annually, is set to begin on July 1, 2023.
The Big Ten Conference will have three premier windows for college football broadcasts on Saturdays, beginning at noon ET with the Big Noon Kickoff on FOX. Games will then follow on CBS at 3:30pm ET and on NBC in primetime.
“The Big Ten Conference media rights agreements are more than just dollars and deals. They are a mechanism to provide stability and maximum exposure for our student-athletes, member institutions and partners during these uncertain times in collegiate athletics,” Big Ten Conference Commissioner Kevin Warren said. “We are very grateful to our world-class media partners for recognizing the strength of the Big Ten Conference brand and providing the incredible resources we need for our student-athletes to compete at the very highest levels, and to achieve their academic and athletics goals.”
CBS will air seven football games during their initial season with the Big Ten in 2023. Beginning in 2024, CBS will televise up to 15 regular-season football games, including an annual Black Friday game during the afternoon with the possibility of a second game that day. All games on CBS will also be streamed via Paramount+.
“The new rights agreements are an incredible achievement for our entire conference and a true testament of what can be accomplished with teamwork,” stated Commissioner Warren. “I am incredibly grateful for collaborative efforts and hard work of our conference staff, specifically Laura Anderson, Anil Gollahalli, Kerry Kenny and Adam Neuman, our presidents and chancellors, athletics directors, coaches, student-athletes, and our partners at CBS, NBC and FOX Sports for solidifying unprecedented Big Ten access across transformative media companies for our fans to tune-in and follow the Big Ten content they love.”
NBC will broadcast 14-to-16 games each season, which will include a new Big Ten Saturday Night contest. Each game will also be simul-streamed on Peacock. Peacock will also exclusively stream eight Big Ten football games each season.
Regular-season Big Ten football games will also continue to be aired on the Big Ten Network and FOX Sports 1.
Additionally, the Big Ten Football Championship Game will be split among CBS, FOX, and NBC during the seven-year span of the agreement. CBS will televise the game in 2024 and 2028, FOX in 2023, 2025, 2027, and 2029, and NBC in 2026.
With USC and UCLA set to join the Big Ten Conference in 2024, the league will expand to 16 teams. USC and UCLA will join Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Maryland, Michigan, Michigan State, Minnesota, Nebraska, Northwestern, Ohio State, Penn State, Purdue, Rutgers, and Wisconsin.