Aug 6, 2025 - Business

The NFL will become part-owner of ESPN

Dan Primack

Animated illustration of an old-timey cash register, with four tabs with footballs on them popping up. — Illustration: Brendan Lynch/Axios

The National Football League has agreed to sell the NFL Network and certain other media assets, including linear rights to the RedZone channel, to Disney-owned ESPN, in exchange for a 10% equity stake.

Why it matters: Media ethics professors will have a field day with this one.

ESPN has long had a financial relationship with the NFL, which many ESPN journalists are charged with covering, but there's usually a bright line between commercial partnerships and actual ownership.

Zoom in: ESPN said in a press release that it's 80% owned by Walt Disney Co. and 20% by Hearst, without disclosing which entity is divesting or the financial terms.

The NFL will retain both NFL Films and NFL.com.

The bottom line: For ESPN, this is aimed at bolstering its upcoming streaming service. For the NFL, it's about added distribution, including internationally.

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The NFL will become part-owner of ESPN

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