A version of this article first appeared in the CNBC Sport newsletter with Alex Sherman, which brings you the biggest news and exclusive interviews from the worlds of sports business and media. Sign up to receive future editions, straight to your inbox. In my inaugural CNBC Sport newsletter , I said the major American sports leagues have their media rights deals locked up for years to come. Time for a mea culpa. Blame my U.S. exceptionalism. The most important media sports rights agreement of the decade is nearing renegotiation — for Canada. The NHL’s Canadian media rights deal will end after next season. Canadian telecommunications company Rogers Communications struck a 12-year, $5.2 billion contract for the NHL’s exclusive TV rights in the country in 2013. The NHL will likely ask for at least double that amount in the new deal, according to people familiar with the matter, who asked not to speak because the details are private. That’s roughly in line with what the National Basketball Association and the National Football League received from their U.S. media partners in recent deals. Rogers’ exclusive negotiating window begins on Jan. 1, 2025 and lasts for 60 days, NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said on CNBC’s “Squawk Box” this week . The company has said it intends to bid again for the Canadian media rights. “We plan to be at the table,” a Rogers spokesperson said in an email. Still, a lot has changed in the global media landscape since 2013. Streaming has supplanted traditional pay TV as the preferred method of viewing for millions of Canadians. That will likely prompt the NHL to seek a traditional TV partner and a streaming partner for its next media rights deal, similar to the structure of the NBA’s most recent agreement, said people familiar with the matter. “If you’re thinking about our television role and presence in Canada, think – we’re the NFL equivalent in Canada. We have 41 of the top 50 programs throughout the year. During our playoffs, we’re the No. 1 program every night,” said Bettman . “There seems to be less of a need for exclusivity. Everybody wants a piece. But, again, we’re open minded. Rogers has been a great partner, and we’re going to wait and see what they say.” The most logical pairing is Amazon and Rogers, which already sublicensed its Monday night games to Amazon Prime Video in a deal struck earlier this year. That two-year agreement gave Prime Video live exclusive weekly hockey games. Amazon’s first game debuted last month on Oct. 14. Amazon will carry 26 exclusive games this season and an additional 26 next season. Amazon has been pleased with the first few weeks of “Monday Night Hockey,” according to people familiar with the matter. Amazon views sports as appealing programming because there’s no substitute for a fan’s favorite team playing a live game. The company’s sports strategy is to increase the value for its Prime subscription, which is actually a little cheaper in Canada than it is in the U.S. — especially after taking into account the exchange rate. A Prime membership costs $9.99 CAD per month (or $99 CAD per year). That’s about $7.14 U.S. per month. For context, a U.S. Prime membership is $14.99 per month ($139 per year). Amazon has also borrowed a page from Netflix ‘s playbook and developed a popular behind-the-scenes series about hockey, similar to what the world’s largest streamer has done with “Drive to Survive” and Formula 1 or “Quarterback” and “Receiver” and the NFL. “Faceoff: Inside the NHL” debuted globally for Amazon on Oct. 4 as a six-part series. It was produced by James Gay-Rees and Paul Martin – the same guys behind “Drive to Survive.” Given the changing landscape, it might make sense if Rogers brought in Amazon as a partner from the start of negotiations, rather than striking a deal after the fact. If Rogers and Amazon can’t get a deal done, other streamers with international aspirations could throw their hats into the ring. Spokespeople for Rogers and Amazon declined to comment on a potential partnership. And by the way, “Squawk Box” is interviewing The Great One, Wayne Gretzky, at 8:15 a.m. ET today, live on CNBC. On the record With boxer Amanda Serrano and Nakisa Bidarian , the co-founder of Most Valuable Promotions … Anyone that watched last week’s massively popular Jake Paul vs. Mike Tyson fight (can we even call it a fight?) on Netflix couldn’t help but notice that the night’s top undercard was light years better in quality. That was the rematch between Katie Taylor and Amanda Serrano . According to Netflix, 50 million people watched Taylor defeat Serrano in a controversial judges’ decision, making it the most-watched event ever between two women boxers. This week, I spoke with Serrano and Nakisa Bidarian , the co-founder of Most Valuable Promotions. They told me it was no accident that Taylor-Serrano was placed right before Tyson-Paul – and they knew it would be a far better fight. “When we put this fight together, I repeatedly said the best fight on the entire card is Taylor-Serrano 2,” said Bidarian. “It’s imperative that Amanda and Katie fight before Mike and Jake, so the world can see their talent.” Bidarian continued, “Jake said it himself. He was more excited about Katie and Amanda’s fight than he was his own fight. But there’s entertainment, there’s branding, there’s packaging, and then there’s the product.” Those that watched the fight saw a cut over Serrano’s eye bust open from a Taylor headbutt. It was a gruesome sight. Serrano told me she hasn’t watched the fight yet … and her eye is fine. “I really don’t like to watch it, because I get really ticked off. I’m like, ‘God, I could have done this.’ It just bothers me,” Serrano said. “My eye is fine. I got eight stitches. The bone is still a little sore, but I’m good to go. If I have to go into the gym again, I’ll go right now. But I don’t want to.” It also sounds like there could be a Serrano-Taylor Part 3. “I’m definitely interested,” Serrano said. “It’s up to the team. I’m the fighter, I just fight.” Watch the full interview. Quote of the week “There’s nothing more valuable than sports content.” – A biased but true take from NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman in a CNBC “Squawk Box” interview on Wednesday. The big number: 31.2 million That’s how many people watched the Buffalo Bills defeat the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday afternoon on CBS. Excluding Thanksgiving and Christmas games, that’s the biggest audience the NFL has had for a regular-season game in 17 years, since a 2007 matchup between the 8-0 Colts and 8-0 Patriots, according to Sports Business Journal. CNBC Sport highlight reel This was a very busy week for CNBC Sport: As said earlier, the NHL is obviously huge in Canada. It’s pretty big in the U.S. too. The next stop? Europe. CNBC’s Jake Piazza reports on the league’s international expansion plans. Salt Lake City, Utah is using its new NHL team as a foundation for its quest to be a national sports hub, as CNBC’s Lillian Rizzo reports . Some big names are backing a new team in the TGL, the golf league launched by Tiger Woods, Rory Mclroy and Golf Channel executive Mike McCarley. New York Mets owner Steve Cohen’s family office, Cohen Private Ventures, announced Thursday that Eli Manning, Derek Jeter, CC Sabathia, Michael Strahan, John McEnroe and Jimmy Fallon are joining the New York Golf club’s investor group as limited partners. The New York team will be represented in its inaugural season by Rickie Fowler, Xander Schauffele, Matt Fitzpatrick and Cameron Young. CNBC’s Jess Golden has the story here . Cleveland may be the next city to get a WNBA team. Dan Gilbert, owner of the NBA’s Cleveland Cavaliers, wants to bring a WNBA team to Northeast Ohio, reports CNBC’s Golden. The NBA and Warner Bros. Discovery reached a settlement earlier this week that officially ends Turner Sports’ 40-year run as a carrier of the NBA’s live games in the U.S. The deal does give Warner Bros. Discovery some international live rights and a bucket of other goodies. With the settlement, the NBA will officially air on ESPN/ABC (and associated streaming properties), NBC/Peacock, and Amazon Prime Video starting next season. Last week, I told you about how composer John Tesh still doesn’t have a deal for “Roundball Rock” with NBC Sports. He confirmed my reporting on CNBC’s “Squawk Box” this week. Watch that interview right here. LeBron James ‘ entertainment and sports company SpringHill is merging with British production company Fulwell 73 . I spoke with LeBron’s business partner Maverick Carter , who will be co-CEO of the newly combined company, and Fulwell co-founder Ben Winston about why they’re merging. Our parent company Comcast is spinning off its cable networks (including CNBC!). NBCUniversal’s sports offerings currently featured on USA and The Golf Channel – the English Premier League, NASCAR, WWE, the Olympics, college basketball, and the PGA Tour – will still be featured on the cable networks. They’ll also likely be licensed to Peacock, NBCUniversal’s streaming service. CNBC’s Dominic Chu interviewed LPGA Commissioner Mollie Marcoux Samaan . They discussed the tour’s growth and audience expansion, among other topics. Around the league A CNBC Sport exclusive: The live sports streaming platform FloSports has named former co-President of Marvel Entertainment Rob Steffens as its new chief financial officer. The appointment comes on the heels of recent rights agreements inked with the American Hockey League and track and field’s Wanda Diamond League, along with the launch of FloCollege, a new platform featuring 12 NCAA partner conferences across D-I, D-II, and D-III. And another CNBC Sport exclusive: League One Volleyball has raised $100 million in new funding led by Atwater Capital — a women-founded private equity firm known for its focus on media and entertainment. LOVB invests in both youth volleyball and professional athletes. LOVB Pro’s inaugural season will begin in January 2025 with teams in Atlanta, Austin, Houston, Madison, Omaha and Salt Lake. Michele Kang is giving $30 million to U.S. Soccer, the largest donation ever for the organization. Kang is a career businesswoman who became the majority owner of the NWSL’s Washington Spirit in 2022. MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred is already thinking about 2028. That’s when MLB can theoretically take back local rights to games and truly transition away from the regional sports network model that’s cracking along with the decline of cable TV. The Athletic reported that “close to two-thirds of the league’s 30 teams appear to have their rights available come 2028, if not more.” That could give Manfred the ability to sell packages of local rights together to national or international media companies while avoiding local blackout restrictions. More details here . The Professional Fighters League will be the first organization to launch major global MMA events in Dubai. The Champions Series World Title event will be held Saturday, Jan. 25 as part of a multiyear partnership between the Dubai Department of Economy and Tourism, the Dubai Sports Council and the PFL.
San Jose Sharks center Tomas Hertl (48) scores a goal against Vancouver Canucks goaltender Thatcher Demko (35) at Rogers Arena, April, 2022.
Derek Cain | USA Today Sports | Reuters
A version of this article first appeared in the CNBC Sport newsletter with Alex Sherman, which brings you the biggest news and exclusive interviews from the worlds of sports business and media. Sign up to receive future editions, straight to your inbox.
In my inaugural CNBC Sport newsletter, I said the major American sports leagues have their media rights deals locked up for years to come.
Time for a mea culpa. Blame my U.S. exceptionalism.
The most important media sports rights agreement of the decade is nearing renegotiation — for Canada.
The NHL’s Canadian media rights deal will end after next season. Canadian telecommunications company Rogers Communications struck a 12-year, $5.2 billion contract for the NHL’s exclusive TV rights in the country in 2013.
The NHL will likely ask for at least double that amount in the new deal, according to people familiar with the matter, who asked not to speak because the details are private. That’s roughly in line with what the National Basketball Association and the National Football League received from their U.S. media partners in recent deals.
Rogers’ exclusive negotiating window begins on Jan. 1, 2025 and lasts for 60 days, NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman said on CNBC’s “Squawk Box” this week.
The company has said it intends to bid again for the Canadian media rights.
“We plan to be at the table,” a Rogers spokesperson said in an email.
Still, a lot has changed in the global media landscape since 2013. Streaming has supplanted traditional pay TV as the preferred method of viewing for millions of Canadians.
That will likely prompt the NHL to seek a traditional TV partner and a streaming partner for its next media rights deal, similar to the structure of the NBA’s most recent agreement, said people familiar with the matter.
“If you’re thinking about our television role and presence in Canada, think – we’re the NFL equivalent in Canada. We have 41 of the top 50 programs throughout the year. During our playoffs, we’re the No. 1 program every night,” said Bettman. “There seems to be less of a need for exclusivity. Everybody wants a piece. But, again, we’re open minded. Rogers has been a great partner, and we’re going to wait and see what they say.”
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The most logical pairing is Amazon and Rogers, which already sublicensed its Monday night games to Amazon Prime Video in a deal struck earlier this year. That two-year agreement gave Prime Video live exclusive weekly hockey games. Amazon’s first game debuted last month on Oct. 14. Amazon will carry 26 exclusive games this season and an additional 26 next season.
Amazon has been pleased with the first few weeks of “Monday Night Hockey,” according to people familiar with the matter. Amazon views sports as appealing programming because there’s no substitute for a fan’s favorite team playing a live game. The company’s sports strategy is to increase the value for its Prime subscription, which is actually a little cheaper in Canada than it is in the U.S. — especially after taking into account the exchange rate. A Prime membership costs $9.99 CAD per month (or $99 CAD per year). That’s about $7.14 U.S. per month. For context, a U.S. Prime membership is $14.99 per month ($139 per year).
Amazon has also borrowed a page from Netflix‘s playbook and developed a popular behind-the-scenes series about hockey, similar to what the world’s largest streamer has done with “Drive to Survive” and Formula 1 or “Quarterback” and “Receiver” and the NFL.
“Faceoff: Inside the NHL” debuted globally for Amazon on Oct. 4 as a six-part series. It was produced by James Gay-Rees and Paul Martin – the same guys behind “Drive to Survive.”
Given the changing landscape, it might make sense if Rogers brought in Amazon as a partner from the start of negotiations, rather than striking a deal after the fact.
If Rogers and Amazon can’t get a deal done, other streamers with international aspirations could throw their hats into the ring.
Spokespeople for Rogers and Amazon declined to comment on a potential partnership.
And by the way, “Squawk Box” is interviewing The Great One, Wayne Gretzky, at 8:15 a.m. ET today, live on CNBC.
On the record
With boxer Amanda Serrano and Nakisa Bidarian, the co-founder of Most Valuable Promotions …
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