On the latest Sporticast episode, hosts Scott Soshnick and Eben Novy-Williams discuss some of the biggest sports business stories of the week, including the start of the NFL season, which opens Thursday when the defending-champion Los Angeles Rams face the Buffalo Bills.
The season kicks off with the NFL’s business firing on all cylinders. The new $110 billion TV deals are already locked in (they start in 2023), and the league is still in the market looking to sell its Sunday Ticket package. Preseason viewership was solid, and the league has a host of new sponsors—like winemaker E&J Gallo—that have it nearing the $2 billion mark in annual partnership revenue.
In another show of NFL strength, FOX says it is 95% sold out of ad inventory for the 2023 Super Bowl in February. That includes some 30-second spots that sold for a record $7 million. Compare that with 30-second spots that sold for $287,000 back in 1981.
Lastly, the hosts discuss the final rounds of the U.S. Open. The opening week was dominated by Serena Williams, and the second week has become a preview of the sport’s future—with young Americans Francis Tiafoe, Coco Gauff and Jessica Pegula all making deep singles runs.
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