Notre Dame has extended its media-rights agreement with NBC through 2029, the school and the network announced Saturday. The deal further cements the school’s commitment to its independent status in football, ending dreams in some conferences of wooing the Fighting Irish as major realignment becomes reality in ’29.
The new agreement “very much” reinforces Notre Dame’s independence, athletic director Jack Swarbrick tells Sports Illustrated. “In some ways more than ever,” he says. “There are elements that reinforce the value of being independent and having our own broadcast partner. It was certainly our preference to stay with NBC.”
Swarbrick says that, as expected, the deal will provide significantly enhanced revenue for Notre Dame, but did not provide specific financial details. The agreement was finalized ahead of schedule by about a year, due to Big Ten expansion and NBC’s addition of other college football programming from that league. That triggered an early negotiation window between the school and the network.
“We’re really fortunate to have gotten it done now,” Swarbrick says. “It’s an interesting media market.” Swarbrick cites the upcoming NBA media-rights negotiations as having the potential to “suck money out of the marketplace.”
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With Pac-12 members scattering to the Big Ten, Big 12 and Atlantic Coast Conferences in 2024, plus Texas and Oklahoma leaving the Big 12 for the Southeastern Conference, the college landscape has never been more unsettled. That contributed to speculation that a revenue gap might force Notre Dame to abandon its treasured independence, but with finalization of this deal, Swarbrick says the athletic department will be in a good place financially for the foreseeable future.
Swarbrick will be succeeded as athletic director in 2024 by Pete Bevacqua, who came to the school from NBC. Swarbrick says negotiations on the new deal began when Bevacqua was still there as chairman of NBC Sports, then he recused himself after it was announced that he was moving to his alma mater as AD.
The NBC agreement will include securing Peacock as the school’s streaming service of record, making Notre Dame the only school to partner with a major streamer for content and its own channel. As part of that arrangement, Peacock will be developing a yearly football documentary. Notre Dame hockey also will continue to be shown on Peacock.
The school welcomed NBC’s addition of Big Ten football. Notre Dame saw it as a sign of greater commitment to broadcasting and covering college football, and the “shoulder programming” of Big Ten games before or after the Fighting Irish’s customary 3:30 p.m. ET window was seen as a bonus that increases viewership of Notre Dame.
Notre Dame is completing its 33rd season with NBC, and this deal encompasses 39 seasons when it is concluded. That’s the longest-running college sports media partnership with one outlet. The Fighting Irish’s home game Saturday against Wake Forest will be the 217th game of the partnership.
