Whether Apple has plans to expand Apple TV+ with live sports has been a common debate over the last two years. A new report from the Athletic today rounds up commentary from top media analysts on the potential for Apple TV+ to add NFL content.
The report explains that the NFL is on the verge of having to renew “most if not all of its media contracts.” While it appears that the Monday Night Football package is likely to remain with ESPN, there are other deals to consider, including NFL Sunday Ticket and Thursday Night Football.
Analyst Lee Berke, however, isn’t so quick to write off Apple. Berke believes that Apple TV+ could be a viable Sunday Ticket distributor:
Meanwhile, Daniel Cohen, the senior vice president of Octagon’s Global Media Rights Consulting division, says that it’s possible Thursday Night Football goes to Apple, but it’s less likely if Apple would be responsible for exclusively production.
Also, with AT&T seemingly ready to move on from Sunday Ticket, streaming becomes a ready-made platform for handling Sunday Ticket’s bandwidth and traffic, with one or several streaming platforms, such as ESPN+, Paramount Plus, Peacock, and Prime ready to jump in to drive subscriptions. Also, don’t count out Apple TV+ as a Sunday Ticket distributor — they need to grow their subscriber base, they have enormous financial resources, and may be looking to add key sports properties to their mix.
This isn’t the first we’ve heard about Apple’s potential interest in bringing NFL content to Apple TV+. A report last year made it clear that NFL commissioner Roger Goodell and Apple CEO Tim Cook “talk.”
Would you be interested in NFL or other sporting content on Apple TV+? Let us know down in the comments!
