College Football Fans: Ditch the Super League Hype, Get Ready for Bundled Bliss (& Bigger Paydays)
The Super League is a Pipe Dream (and Here’s Why)
Everyone’s talking about a Super League—fans, pundits, even coaches who think they’re the next Nick Saban. Patrick Crakes, former FOX Sports VP, dropped the cold, hard truth on Canzano & Winer, the podcast—it ain’t happening, and here’s why.
Money, Money, Money
Forget the on-field drama for a second. To build a Super League, you need investors willing to drop not only a billion or two but something north of ten or twenty. Billion. That’s buyout money for Fox and ESPN’s conference rights, building an entire network infrastructure, the whole shebang. And then there’s the next chore: finding someone to actually distribute it.
Do you think you can buy out the rights, restructure everything, and then sell it back to those networks for a fat profit? Dream on!
The only scenario where a Super League might make sense is if Fox and ESPN are in as partners, partial owners even. But even then, the whole thing is a financial Jenga tower. Why spend billions to reinvent the wheel when they’re already raking in the dough?
The Future Isn’t Super, It’s Bundled
So, what’s the future of college football broadcasting if not a Super League? It’s all about bundles.
Remember when you actually had to go to a game to see your team play? Yeah, me neither. Then came regional sports networks, streaming rights, and the expectation that every game should be available for a price.
But here’s the problem: those bundle prices are usually by conference. That works great regionally but not so much nationally. It’s pushed us towards these mega-conferences, trying to get fans in California to care about ACC football so they’ll buy the bundle and watch their former Pac-12 team.
The future is one giant bundle. A Toledo fan paying for the Oklahoma State game even though he couldn’t care less. That’s where the networks see maximum value.
What This Means For You
So, ditch the Super League fantasy and prepare for the bundled future. It’s coming, whether we like it or not. Your team’s value isn’t just about wins and losses anymore; it’s about how they fit into this bigger picture. So, the next time you’re cheering in the stands or screaming at your TV, remember: it’s not just about the game but the future of how we watch it.