With the NFL preseason starting this week, the NFL has still not finalized new broadcast deals for the 2026-27 season, as talks with CBS are reportedly “on hold” while the Paramount acquisition of Warner Bros. Discovery is pending.
According to a report from Anthony Crupi for Sportico, an original deal between the NFL and Paramount was upended when Skydance acquired Paramount in 2025, which triggered a change-of-control clause and gave the league freedom to make deals with other partners. The NFL now has the upper hand in negotiations with CBS as it can choose to walk away from the deal at any time if its new terms aren’t agreed to.
Ahead of this season, the league intended to make a new rights deal with CBS, then with FOX, then with other broadcast partners. That plan changed when Paramount hit a roadblock in its efforts to acquire Warner Bros. Discovery, with a group of 12 states arguing against the deal. The merger is now likely going to be delayed until next year. The antitrust lawsuit “would appear to have put any near-term talks between the NFL and CBS on hold,” according to Sportico.
That also means that new deals aren’t being made with other partners, including FOX, NBC, and ABC. Those broadcasters won’t need to worry about negotiations for the upcoming season, as the league will stick with existing deals until it can finalize new terms with CBS. That’s good news for the networks. We reported in April that the league is looking to roughly double the amount of money it gets for media rights fees.
The deal with CBS will set the precedent for other partners. If their fees go up, it’s likely that we’ll see the increased costs get passed along to viewers through higher subscription costs.
Luckily, we most likely won’t see the effects of new deals this season. As Crupi explains, “Historically, the NFL has preferred to hash out its most important business arrangements outside the penumbra of the season proper, and once the annual Kickoff Game gets underway, that tends to signal that the heavy-duty arrangements have been put on ice until after Roger Goodell presents the Lombardi Trophy to the champs.”
