Skip to content

Report: Apple Considers Offer for NFL Sunday Ticket Package

    Derek Wolfe #95 and Von Miller #58 of the Denver Broncos celebrate after Wolfe fired Tom Brady #12 of the New England Patriots in the AFC Championship game at Sports Authority Field at Mile High on January 24, 2016 in Denver, Colorado.
    enlarge † Derek Wolfe #95 and Von Miller #58 of the Denver Broncos celebrate after Wolfe fired Tom Brady #12 of the New England Patriots in the AFC Championship game at Sports Authority Field at Mile High on January 24, 2016 in Denver, Colorado.

    Dustin Bradford | Getty Images

    Over the past two decades, Apple has seen itself transform from a maker of expensive computers to a hardware, software and entertainment goliath. Live sports may be next on the agenda — according to a report in Front Office Sports, Apple expects a multi-billion dollar bid for the National Football League’s Sunday Ticket package.

    Sunday Ticket, which broadcasts NFL games off-market, has been carried by Directv since its launch in 1994. The rights to Sunday Ticket will expire after the 2022 season, and with Directv bleeding both subscribers and money, Sunday Ticket will find a new home for the 2023 season.

    In addition to selling the rights to Sunday Ticket, the NFL is also looking for an investment partner for NFL Media, including the league’s website, NFL Network, and NFL RedZone. Apple would also become a minority shareholder in NFL Media, in addition to the streaming rights to off-market NFL games.

    Last year, the NFL locked up its current broadcast partners on new contracts totaling $9 billion a year. Amazon has also secured the rights to the Thursday night series of games for an additional $1 billion a year.

    Apple will have to pay a heavy price to get in on some NFL action. Not only does the expiring Sunday Ticket deal cost Directv $1.5 billion a year, but some of the league’s broadcast rights saw their costs nearly double under the new contracts, which run through the 2033 season. 49 percent in NFL Media and Apple would certainly pay more than $3 billion a year for a business partnership with the most popular professional sports league in the United States.

    That’s a big change for a company with more than $200 billion in cash and securities on hand.

    While Apple is also negotiating with Major League Baseball to stream regular-season games during the week, a deal with the NFL or MLB would mark its first foray into live sports. With Netflix, Hulu, HBO Max and Amazon Prime constantly producing new scripted programming, streaming live sports would give Apple another way to differentiate itself from the competition, resulting in more subscribers… and more money.