Report: ESPN Picks Up TV Option for ACC Through 2036

ESPN's broadcasting partnership with the ACC would have ended following the 2027 season had the option not been picked up.
Pylon at Louisville football's L&N Stadium
Pylon at Louisville football's L&N Stadium / Jared Anderson - Louisville Report

LOUISVILLE, Ky. - The reports of the Atlantic Coast Conference's impending collapse are, at least for the time being, greatly exaggerated.

ESPN has reportedly picked up the option to continue broadcasting the ACC through 2036, according to ESPN's David Hale and Andrea Adelson. Prior to picking up the option, ESPN's broadcasting partnership with the ACC would have ended following the 2027 season had they not picked up the option.

ESPN agreed to pick up the option after the league and commissioner Jim Phillips agreed to "value adds," such as "marquee matchups in football and men's basketball to maximize content on the networks," according to Hale and Adelson.

The duo also reported that ESPN's negotiations with the ACC regarding the option "ran in conjunction" with the league's own discussions with Clemson and Florida State regarding the two school's lawsuits against the league and the proposition of a new revenue sharing model in the league.

While an agreement to new revenue sharing model "is not imminent," Hale and Adelson reported that Clemson and FSU would be expected to drop their lawsuits if the model was finalized. In the lawsuits, the two schools had been challenging the ACC's grant of rights media deal and the penalties for breaking it, mainly because of the revenue gap between the ACC and the Big Ten/SEC.

However, in recent months, the ACC has been hard at work proposing a new rev share plan to keep the league together. Included in the proposition is a "brand fund," where money would be distributed to to those in the conference that generate the most revenue in football and men's and women's basketball.

According to Hale and Adelson, Clemson, Florida State, Miami and North Carolina are "likely at the top" of the revenue sharing pyramid.

Considering there had been chatter over the summer surrounding Louisville and a potential departure for the Big 12, barring a complete collapse in talk between the ACC and Clemson/FSU, it seems that the Cardinals will have a home in the ACC for the foreseeable future.

Or at least until 2036.

(Photo via Jared Anderson - Louisville Cardinals On SI)

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Matthew McGavic
MATTHEW MCGAVIC

McGavic is a 2016 Sport Administration graduate of the University of Louisville, and a native of the Derby City. He has been covering the Cardinals in various capacities since 2017, with a brief stop in Atlanta, Ga. on the Georgia Tech beat. He is also a co-host of the 'From The Pink Seats' podcast on the State of Louisville network. Video gamer, bourbon drinker and dog lover. Find him on Twitter at @Matt_McGavic