The potential deal between ESPN and NFL Media continues to heat up.
According to a report by Austin Karp and Ben Fischer of Sports Business Journal, the NFL may hold a special league meeting next month to discuss a deal.
Last month, The Athletic’s Andrew Marchand reported that negotiations between the two sides were still progressing, with ESPN wanting to close the deal before it launches its forthcoming direct-to-consumer product this fall. An August meeting would seem to put that timeline in reach, though it’d be tight if the two sides wanted to get a deal done prior to the start of football season. Of course, nobody knows just how far along negotiations are at this point.
Talks between ESPN and NFL Media have been ongoing for well over a year now, with the league’s media arm being valued at around $2 billion according to reports. NFL Media owns and operates the popular NFL RedZone program, NFL Network and its affiliated shows, and also holds rights to a handful of regular season NFL games each year.
A purchase by ESPN would mark a major move forward for the network and its direct-to-consumer product as the NFL continues to dominate sports media’s coverage.