Wisconsin athletics: Impact of new 7-year Big Ten media rights deal

A look at what the new Big Ten media rights contract could mean for the Wisconsin Badgers athletic department.

On Thursday, the Big Ten signed a new 7-year agreement with broadcasting partners FOX, CBS, and NBC worth over $7 billion. 

The groundbreaking announcement represents the most lucrative deal in college sports and will generate over $70 million in revenue a year for all 16 Big Ten institutions beginning in 2024 when UCLA and USC officially join.  

The news will have a considerable effect on the University of Wisconsin, namely the football and men's basketball programs. Here is a look at three ways in which the historic new media rights deal will impact Wisconsin athletics.

Contents

1. TV providers and broadcasts
2. Money and facilities upgrades
3. Expansion

TV providers and broadcasts

Beginning on July 1, 2023, Big Ten games will be broadcasted across CBS, FOX, NBC, Big Ten Network, FS1, and NBC's streaming platform Peacock.

This will essentially eliminate the conference's longstanding relationship with ESPN and ABC for home Big Ten contests but broaden reach on Saturdays for college football.

The six broadcasting channels will draft to determine which games are played on specific networks and will follow an NFL model with FOX (Big Ten Saturday), CBS (3:30 ET), and NBC (primetime), each showing the top Big Ten games in their time slots.

With all three channels available on cable, streaming services, and local TV antennas, the Big Ten will have the majority of the best games easy viewable on college football Saturdays. The high-profile national broadcasts should improve brand recognition for Wisconsin and the other programs in the B1G. 

This was ultimately one of the biggest drivers in the deal according to Big Ten Commissioner Kevin Warren. “The Big Ten Conference media rights agreements are more than just dollars and deals. They are a mechanism to provide stability and maximum exposure for our student-athletes, member institutions, and partners during these uncertain times in collegiate athletics,” Warren said in a press release shared. “We are very grateful to our world-class media partners for recognizing the strength of the Big Ten Conference brand and providing the incredible resources we need for our student-athletes to compete at the very highest levels, and to achieve their academic and athletics goals.”

Additionally, the three major networks will rotate the Big Ten Championship Game and will now showcase more college basketball games than before.

Peacock will air eight football games a season and be regularly used in basketball season with 40+ games scheduled on the platform. For many fans, this will be a potential drawback of the new deal. However, women's basketball will be more prominently shown, with games taking place on both Big Ten Network and Peacock.

You can see the Big Ten Championship Game TV schedule for football below:

CBS: 2024, 2028

FOX: 2023, 2025, 2027, 2029

NBC: 2026

Of note, ESPN will still show some non-conference and bowl games featuring the Big Ten. 

More than anything, Kevin Warren & the Big Ten took an NFL approach, to reach as many potential fans as possible, catering to casual fans. A potential global approach.

The SEC went with familiarity and owning the space people associate with sports (ESPN). Its brand is itself.

— Chris Vannini (@ChrisVannini) August 18, 2022

Money and facilities upgrades

From strictly a monetary perspective, the new media rights agreement is a huge win for Wisconsin and the Big Ten Conference. 

The Badgers athletic department will continue to maintain its status as one of the highest-grossing schools in college athletics, and that is good news for the health of the program and the future. 

UW Athletic Director Chris McIntosh had this to say about the landmark deal:

"We are excited about the Big Ten's new media deals and what it means for our university, student-athletes, fans, and alumni. The ability to work with such innovative partners speaks to the strength of the Big Ten. These partnerships will allow our institution to continue to invest in opportunities for student-athletes and to provide resources that support the overall mission of the campus. Additionally, with ambitious capital projects on the horizon, including a new football practice facility and necessary renovations to Camp Randall Stadium, it is essential that we re-invest in our facilities to provide both our student-athletes and fans with the best experience possible." - Chris McIntosh

The new media deal came on the same day as plans for new football practice facilities were shared with local regents. The proposal would shift the indoor track to the McClain Center, where the football team currently practices, and build a modern indoor practice and performance center for the football team where The Shell is presently. 

The money from the media deal would likely also cascade to the other sports and continued facilities updates across campus. 

One interesting aspect of the new Big Ten deal is how short the length of the contract is. The new agreement allows the conference to sign another new deal before most other conferences, namely the SEC and ACC, are up to renegotiate due to lengthy contracts. This tactic could allow Kevin Warren and the conference to widen the fiscal gap between the other conferences in the future as well. 

Todd Milewski of the Wisconsin State Journal ($) has an interesting article that goes into greater depth on the new practice facility proposal. 

Hello, @B1Gfootball.
Hit the music. pic.twitter.com/PbMHPql1Cz

— CBS Sports (@CBSSports) August 18, 2022

Expansion

The new agreements also open the doors for future expansion. Commissioner Warren has come out and stated that 20 teams in the conference are probable and that paying players down the road is not out of the question.

The new deal paints a bleak picture for conferences such as the Pac-12 and the Big 12, whose conference payouts are much less than the Big Ten, and makes it more likely that teams such as Cal, Oregon, Stanford, and Washington join the Big Ten in the future. There are contract escalators that could push the media deal to upwards of $10 billion if future expansion occurs.

Notre Dame remains atop the Big Ten's wishlist, but the four Pac-12 schools listed above are also under consideration per Dennis Dodd.

For Wisconsin, the professionalization of college athletics and future expansion could have a negative impact on non-revenue sports. For now, though, it is clear that the deal is primarily focused on college football. 

Big Ten’s Kevin Warren tells @RealSportsHBO he sees Big Ten having 20 members & paying players. “Those (paying players) are things we have to resolve. We have to. So I want to be part of this conversation & will be part of this conversation of what we can do to make this better”

— Brett McMurphy (@Brett_McMurphy) August 19, 2022

Related links:

• Depth on the defensive line standing out for Wisconsin football
• Bobby Engram speaks about several players playing well in fall camp
• Defensive end Rodas Johnson making plays for the Badgers in fall camp

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