ESPN Closes Deal for NFL Network, Giving League 10% Stake in ESPN

ESPN has closed its acquisition of NFL Network and several other National Football League media assets, after securing approval from the U.S. Department of Justice and other antitrust authorities. In exchange, the NFL is receiving a 10% equity stake in ESPN, deepening the financial ties between the most powerful U.S. sports league and its primary broadcast partner.

The transaction, announced as complete Jan. 31, stems from a nonbinding agreement first unveiled in August 2025. Under the terms, ESPN takes control of NFL Network, the league’s official fantasy football platform and the rights to distribute the NFL RedZone channel to cable and satellite providers, while the NFL retains ownership of many of its digital businesses and its own streaming service.

Executives on both sides framed the move as a way to streamline operations and deliver more football content to fans across platforms.

“Today’s announcement paves the way for the world’s leading sports media brand and America’s most popular sport to deliver an even more compelling experience for NFL fans,” Disney Chief Executive Bob Iger said when the agreement was first disclosed last summer.

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell said then that selling NFL Network “will build on its remarkable legacy” by putting the channel in the hands of a company that specializes in running large sports networks.

What ESPN is getting

With the deal now closed, ESPN controls the league’s 24-hour cable channel, which reaches roughly 50 million subscribers, along with NFL Fantasy and linear distribution rights for RedZone. The company also takes over key studio facilities in the Los Angeles area that have long housed NFL Network programming.

Beginning later this year, NFL Network is expected to be folded into ESPN’s direct-to-consumer “unlimited” streaming tier, which launched Aug. 21, 2025. That offering, priced at $29.99 per month or $299.99 per year, makes ESPN’s linear channels available without a cable subscription and bundles them with ESPN+.

The inclusion of NFL Network means that for the first time, fans will be able to get that channel as part of ESPN’s standalone streaming package, rather than solely through traditional pay-TV operators.

On the linear side, NFL Network will continue to carry seven regular-season games per year under an arrangement tied to the league’s long-term media contracts. Four games that air on ESPN, including some overlapping Monday night windows, will also be simulcast on NFL Network, and ESPN will license three additional games to the channel.

At the same time, the league has taken back the rights to four international games previously controlled by NFL Network. Those contests are expected to be sold separately to broadcasters or streamers as the NFL expands its slate of overseas matchups.

What the NFL keeps—and what it gains

In return, the NFL becomes a minority owner of ESPN. Following the transaction, ESPN is owned 72% by Disney’s ABC Inc., 18% by Hearst and 10% by the NFL. Analysts have estimated the value of the league’s stake at roughly $2 billion to $3 billion, though the companies have not disclosed an official valuation.

The league did not sell “most” of its media arm. It continues to own and operate NFL Films, NFL+, NFL.com, the league’s free ad-supported streaming channel, its podcast network and the official websites of all 32 clubs. The NFL also still owns and produces RedZone itself and keeps digital streaming rights to the popular whip-around channel.

Under the new structure, ESPN is responsible for making RedZone available to cable and satellite systems and has broad rights to use the RedZone brand. That opens the door for potential RedZone-style channels for college football or other sports. But fans who access RedZone through digital services such as NFL+ will still be dealing directly with the league.

Hans Schroeder, the NFL’s executive vice president of media distribution, acknowledged last year that turning over day-to-day operation of NFL Network to an outside partner is a shift.

“This is new as far as a partner now operating a business that we built, ran and grew,” Schroeder said. He added that the league would “continue to balance that in a really arm’s length way” with all of its media partners.

Why it matters for streaming and carriage

For viewers, the changes will not be immediate. League and network officials have said fans are unlikely to notice significant differences on NFL Network until at least April, when most NFL Media employees formally become ESPN staff and programming decisions can be more fully aligned.

The deal comes as ESPN, based in Bristol, Connecticut, reshapes its business to address cord-cutting and changing viewer habits. Long dependent on cable subscription fees and advertising, the company has spent the past several years building out its streaming presence through ESPN+ and, more recently, its full direct-to-consumer service that includes its flagship channels.

NFL content remains central to that strategy. ESPN pays an estimated $2.7 billion annually for “Monday Night Football” and related rights. Adding NFL Network, the official fantasy platform and RedZone distribution deepens ESPN’s role as a one-stop shop for football programming, data and analysis at a time when live sports are one of the few reliable drivers of large, real-time TV audiences.

The NFL, for its part, is shedding the financial and operational burden of running a cable network in a shrinking pay-TV universe while gaining an ownership stake in a key partner. At the same time, the league keeps control of its own streaming service, NFL+, and its digital properties, giving it flexibility to reach fans directly on phones and connected TVs.

“With the closing, we will begin integrating NFL employees into ESPN in the months ahead,” the companies said in a joint statement announcing the deal’s completion. “NFL fans can look forward to expanded NFL programming, greater access to NFL Network, innovative Fantasy experiences and unparalleled coverage of America’s most popular sport.”

Regulatory review—and questions ahead

The transaction underwent review by the Justice Department and regulators in other jurisdictions, who examined whether it would give ESPN undue leverage in the market for sports programming. Some analysts had predicted the process could stretch into late 2026, given concerns about concentration of NFL content. Approval before this year’s Super Bowl suggests authorities were satisfied that competition from other broadcasters and technology companies — including CBS, Fox, NBC, Amazon and YouTube — remains robust.

Still, the arrangement raises questions for the next round of media rights negotiations. The NFL will be both a seller of game packages and a part-owner of one of the bidders. Other partners are likely to watch closely for signs of preferential treatment.

There are also broader issues of carriage and pricing. ESPN is already among the most expensive channels for cable and satellite providers to carry. With NFL Network and linear RedZone rights now under the same corporate umbrella, future disputes could take even more football content off screens if negotiations break down.

For fans, the practical impact will depend on how they watch. Traditional cable and satellite customers will continue to find NFL Network and RedZone through their providers, though bundled more tightly with ESPN’s suite of channels. Cord-cutters who want access to NFL Network, ESPN’s game packages and integrated fantasy tools will increasingly find those services consolidated inside one $29.99-per-month app.

The league’s games will still be spread across multiple outlets — CBS and Fox on Sunday afternoons, NBC in prime time, Amazon on Thursday nights, ESPN and ABC on Mondays, and YouTube’s Sunday Ticket for out-of-market contests. But as the NFL and ESPN knit their businesses more closely together, the center of gravity for everything that happens around those games — from highlight shows to fantasy leagues to RedZone-style viewing — is moving under a single roof.