Amazon has emerged as the front-runner to buy a minority stake in the NFL’s media properties, sources tell Front Office Sports.
The tech giant is in talks with the country’s richest sports league about acquiring up to a 49% stake in NFL Network, RedZone and NFL.com, said sources.
But the Amazon deal isn’t done and there are multiple media, private equity and tech bidders seeking a piece of the NFL media empire, said sources. A last-minute snag could push a final agreement back by several months, warned another source.
The $10 billion league
hired Goldman Sachs Group in June to sort out potential partners.
Starting in 2022, Amazon Prime Video will become the first streaming service to control an exclusive package of NFL games, paying $1 billion a year for the rights to “Thursday Night Football.”
With annual revenue of $386 billion, Amazon is also bidding for the “Sunday Ticket” package against Walt Disney Co., Paramount Plus, Apple and others, said sources. Bidding for Sunday Ticket could reach $2 billion to $3 billion a year.