NFL, College Football Dilemma

Sportico writes, “The upheaval in the economics of college sports, particularly with star athletes now making millions in above-board pay, has bred a new type of potential conflict…”

September 5, 2025

College Football Salaries Muddle Role of NFL Owners as Boosters
Sportico’s Eben Novy-Williams writes, “While the NFL has deliberately kept an arms-length relationship with college football, many league owners are prominent university boosters, a relationship that’s grown more complex in recent years. 

“The upheaval in the economics of college sports, particularly with star athletes now making millions in above-board pay, has bred a new type of potential conflict, one with a more direct line between money donated to universities and the salaries paid to future NFL players.”
^Sportico

NFL Kicks Off the Season With Its Largest-Ever Sponsor Roster
SBJ’s David Broughton reports: “The NFL heads into the 2025 regular season with a league-record 46 sponsors, including six brands that are making their debut. Adobe, NetApp and Novartis are entering their rookie season with the league, along with Jersey Mike’s, which replaces Subway after the brand’s five-year run as the NFL’s official sandwich. Subway was the only 2024 sponsor that did not return this season. The two other new sponsors are Abercrombie & Fitch and Breitling.”
^{Sports Business Journal}

State of Connecticut Submits Bid for Minority Ownership of Sun 
The WNBA has received a proposal from the state of Connecticut that would give the state minority ownership of the Connecticut Sun. According to an ESPN report, the state’s bid would value the team higher than the $250 million that the WNBA has proposed. The league’s preferred market for the franchise is believed to be Houston, Front Office Sports reported previously. 
^{Front Office Sports}

Did the Clippers Use a $28M Endorsement Deal to Skirt NBA Salary Cap Rules?
AP News’ David Brandt writes, “The NBA’s offseason got a big shakeup this week when the league confirmed it was investigating whether a $28 million endorsement contract between Kawhi Leonard and a California-based sustainability services company allowed the Los Angeles Clippers to circumvent league salary cap rules.

“The league’s probe will focus on the connection between Leonard, the Clippers and a company called Aspiration Fund Adviser LLC, which filed for bankruptcy this year. It listed several creditors at that time, including the Clippers and a company called KL2 Aspire LLC that was owed $7 million.”
^{AP News}

NFL Season Preview: A Change by Nielsen Will Have a Big Impact on Viewership Figures This Season
SBJ’s Austin Karp writes, “Can an NFL regular-season game hit 50 million viewers? That has never happened, but the league this season may well get as close as it’s ever gotten to the mark normally reserved for postseason games, thanks to the combination of a marquee matchup and a new way of crunching the numbers.

“Back in May, the NFL announced that its two biggest draws — the Kansas City Chiefs and Dallas Cowboys — would face off in not only a popular spot for audiences, but in the most popular spot: 4:25 p.m. ET on Thanksgiving Day. The game, which will be on CBS, could become the most-watched NFL regular-season game ever. Start with the fact that Thanksgiving games have delivered the NFL its seven best regular-season windows over the last five seasons.”
^{Sports Business Journal}

Fox’s Texas-Ohio State is Best Week 1 College Football Audience on Record
SBJ’s Austin Karp writes, “Texas-Ohio State easily led all Week 1 college football games with 16.6 million viewers in Fox’s “Big Noon Saturday” window, marking the best Week 1 game ever for college football (on any network). That’s the same audience that last season’s Texas-Georgia SEC Championship drew on ABC/ESPN. Big data was a factor in raising the audience for Texas-OSU, but not too much, with sources telling SBJ that the percentage increase from panel to Big Data was in the low single digits. Texas-OSU also marks Fox’s third-best CFB game on record.”
^{Sports Business Journal}

UNC vs. TCU Averages 6.6 Million Viewers in Bill Belichick’s College Coaching Debut
The Athletic’s Richard Deitsch and David Ubben write, “TCU’s 48-14 routing of North Carolina averaged 6.6 million viewers, according to ESPN senior vice president of research Flora Kelly. That’s the most-watched Labor Day college football game in nine years and up 48 percent over the game in that slot last year (Boston College versus Florida State). Monday’s game peaked at 8.8 million viewers.”
^{The Athletic}

NFL Says ‘RedZone’ Will Have ‘Incredibly Small Ad Load’ Amid Furor
FOS’ Daniel Roberts and David Rumsey write, “After NFL RedZone host Scott Hanson went on The Pat McAfee Show on Wednesday and officially confirmed commercials are returning full-time to RedZone this season, the sports public on social media erupted in complaints, gripes, and barbs at Disney and ESPN, which last month struck an equity deal with the league.”

While ads are playing, viewers will hear audio of the ads, but the other box will show “NFL RedZone.”
^{Front Office Sports}

NBC Debuts New Broadcast Features for NFL Opener
NBC rolled out a couple of new features for last night’s Eagles-Cowboys season opener. One feature debuting involves the “ability of a telestrator controlled by the production team to remove players during a replay, potentially offering a clearer view of a specific action or moment.”
^{Philadelphia Inquirer via Sports Business Journal}

TNT Sports to Try Its Own Streaming App After WBD Split
FOS’ Michael McCarthy and Ryan Glasspiegel write, “Yet another sports-centric streaming service is on the way, one borne in significant part from a major corporate restructuring. In the wake of the forthcoming split of TNT Sports parent company Warner Bros. Discovery into two separate entities, current WBD CFO Gunnar Wiedenfels said a new app based around the TNT Sports portfolio is now actively in development. 
^{Front Office Sports}

Fever Break Ground on New Practice Facility
The construction process for the Fever’s new dedicated practice facility has “officially begun,” with team and city officials “breaking ground on the development” this morning. The $78M building, which will “be known as the Indiana Fever Sports Performance Center,” is set to open “by May 2027.” Pacers Sports & Entertainment CEO Mel Raines, said in remarks during the groundbreaking ceremony that the project is “laying the foundation for the future of the Indiana Fever and continuing the decades of making Indianapolis a world class sport city.”
^{Indianapolis Business Journal via Sports Business Journal}

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Why Duke Went All in on Football: Blue Devils Invest Heavily for Program to Compete at Highest Level
CBS Sports’ John Talty writes, “A program that didn't even have a 100-yard practice field when David Cutcliffe took over in 2008, Duke is now all-in on football in a way it never has before. 

“The flashpoint this offseason was landing Tulane quarterback Darian Mensah on a record-setting deal believed to be worth $8 million over two years. A big swing for basketball wouldn't have raised an eyebrow, but Duke football paying top-of-the-market value shocked the college football world.”
^{CBS Sports}

Sources: NCAA Moves One Step Closer to a Single Transfer Portal Window for College Football
Sources told Yahoo Sports’ Ross Dellenger that the NCAA’s Football Oversight Committee voted in favor of a single 10-day transfer portal window following the 2025 season. If approved, the transfer portal would open on Jan. 2.
^{Yahoo! Sports}

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