NFL’s Billion-Dollar TV Talks Won’t Wait for Virus End

Scott Soshnick, Eben Novy-Williams and Michael Barr discuss a host of issues related to the business of sports, including the National Football League’s decision to push forward with negotiations aimed at completing new media rights deals amid the coronavirus outbreak. The NFL will soon embark on talks with the incumbents, who pay handsomely for the most popular programming on television. The NFL’s existing contract with ESPN ends after the 2021 season. The Walt Disney Co. unit pays about $1.9 billion annually for “Monday Night Football.” The league’s broadcast deals with the other networks -- CBS, NBC and fox -- wind down after the 2022 campaign. Disney, Comcast and ViacomCBS have lost about $46 billion in market cap since the NBA suspended games because of the pandemic. Also talked about is the increasing likelihood that the Tokyo Olympics will be postponed, and Nascar’s broadcast of its eNascar iRacing Pro Invitational Series race on FS1 over the weekend. The race was held on iRacing’s simulation platform, giving sports fans something to watch during the virus shutdown of games.Hosts: Scott Soshnick, Eben Novy-Williams and Michael BarrProducer: Bob BraggSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.