ACC and ESPN announce long-term commitment with option exercised

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The ACC and ESPN announced Thursday a "renewed commitment of their long-term media partnership," with ESPN exercising its option to extend the league’s base rights agreement to continue to be the ACC’s media partner through the 2035-36 academic year.

“We appreciate the ongoing partnership with ESPN and their enduring commitment that further solidifies the ACC as a premier league in all facets,” said ACC Commissioner Jim Phillips in a news release. “The extension showcases the importance of our long-standing relationship, and I want to personally thank the entire ESPN team for their leadership and dedication to our collective future. In addition, I want to thank our ACC Board of Directors who have been involved throughout this entire process. The resolve from both parties to further enhance the partnership through innovation and creativity to continue to drive additional value remains our top priority.”

“We are pleased to extend our media rights agreement with the ACC through 2036, continuing our longstanding relationship,” said Jimmy Pitaro, Chairman, ESPN, in a news release. “We remain committed to serving the ACC, its member schools, student athletes and fans via comprehensive live game coverage, storytelling and broad exposure across our unprecedented array of networks and platforms, including ACC Network. The ACC is a pillar of ESPN’s leading commitment to college sports and we are thrilled to continue the partnership over the next decade.”

ESPN and Yahoo reported the imminent move on Thursday morning, along with potential future measures adding Notre Dame to a more regular football matchup with Clemson and adding more incentives to the big athletic brands such as the Tigers:

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.

Negotiations surrounding the option ran in conjunction with discussions between the ACC and Clemson and Florida State on a new revenue distribution model aimed at alleviating the schools' biggest concerns over financial disparities with peers in the Big Ten and SEC, both of which have more generous TV contracts signed over the past two years.

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...

As part of the settlement, Clemson and Florida State are asking the ACC to agree to reduce penalties for exiting the grant of rights after 2031, when TV contracts for the Big Ten, SEC and Big 12 are set to expire.

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