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Disney has agreed to sell 10% of ESPN’s stake to the National Football League in exchange for control of the league’s television channels and fantasy football business on a multi-billion dollar deal set to reshape the sports’ viewership ratings.
The deal will deepen ESPN and the NFL as Disney restarts its sports streaming service High Stake later this month.
As part of the deal, Disney owns and operates the NFL network and distributes the NFL Red Zone TV channel, a cult favorite among US football fans.
Disney did not disclose ratings for the stake sales. Lightshed analyst Rich Greenfield estimates ESPN is worth $25 billion, meaning its NFL assets are valued at $2 billion to $3 billion. After regulatory approvals that could take a year, Disney owns 72% of ESPN, while Hearst controls 18%.
The deal paves the way for world-leading sports media brands and America’s most popular sports to provide an even more engaging experience for NFL fans in a way that only ESPN and Disney can do,” said Bob Iger, Disney’s CEO.
Disney is attempting a drastic overhaul of ESPN to translate channels in the digital age. ESPN remains a financial powerhouse, but it has led to the decline of traditional television. More than 100 million US households subscribed to ESPN at their peak over a decade ago. It reduced to 65mn.
Disney launched Streaming Service ESPN+ in 2018, but when the company last reported its subscriber figures in 2024, subscriber growth was stagnant at 24 million.
ESPN is expected to incorporate Redzone into its new streaming app. Redzone live coverage of all scoring opportunities in Sunday afternoon games, providing essential viewing for fantasy football players and enthusiastic fans.
For the NFL, ESPN trading marks a strategic shift from performing its own media properties while acquiring stocks into one of its most valuable distribution partners, and is directly interested in the success of the channel. ESPN pays the NFL about $2.7 billion a year to screen games.
The American Football League has been researching for years the options for selling media assets, including low-performing NFL networks.
Sports is essential for broadcasters and streamers as they portray large live audiences. Major leagues such as the NFL enjoy favorable relationships with cable companies and traditional broadcasters, but new rivals like Amazon’s Prime Video, Netflix and YouTube are becoming more competitive.
Viewing habits have also changed as sports fans follow the sport on multiple screens, watch shorter highlights for social media, and betting on smartphones following the widespread legalization of sports gambling in the US since 2018.
