ALinChainz
02-04-2005, 05:55 PM
By BARRY WILNER, AP Football Writer
February 4, 2005
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (AP) -- Commissioner Paul Tagliabue sent a veiled warning to ABC/ESPN on Friday that the league might get involved in creating a new sports TV network.
While the NFL already has extended agreements with Fox and CBS for its Sunday afternoon TV rights, negotiations on the prime-time packages with ABC and ESPN have stalled.
``We're giving very serious consideration to being part of the launch of another major sports network on cable and satellite television,'' Tagliabue said during his annual state of the NFL address at the Super Bowl.
A league source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Fox is interested in the prime-time games for the new sports network, which would compete with ESPN. The league wants to add Thursday night and Saturday night games, although not for the entire season.
``We're also talking to other television networks and companies about the packages we have to sell,'' Tagliabue said, ``including the Thursday night/Saturday package we're creating. And there's strong interest in other companies, some of whom already have contracts with us and some who don't.''
At one point, Fox was interested in buying the entire NFL package. But it settled for renewing its NFC Sunday afternoon rights for six years and $4.3 billion last November; CBS kept the AFC Sunday package for $3.7 billion. Both have agreed to be flexible so the NFL could move some better matchups from Sunday afternoon to prime time.
Tagliabue said ESPN/ABC ``have tremendous interest in staying with the NFL, both on cable television and broadcast television. We have an interest in them staying with us. We have a disagreement about what the rights fees should be.''
Neither Fox nor ABC returned calls for comment.
The current deals expire after the 2005 season.
By then, the NFL might have staged a game that counts outside U.S. borders. Tagliabue said the league is considering a game in Mexico or Canada, perhaps as soon as the upcoming schedule.
Prime candidates to sacrifice a game in their home stadium would be the Cardinals for Mexico or the Bills for Canada, although Tagliabue mentioned no specific teams.
And Tagliabue envisions preseason games in China leading up to the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
The commissioner also:
-- Vowed to have a franchise in Los Angeles by the end of the decade.
``What matters is two teams left L.A. a decade ago. We want to get back there, whether it's '08 or '09, it's going to be an unacceptably long period of time out of L.A.''
He didn't say if an expansion team or an established franchise would wind up in Southern California.
-- Expressed some concern about the gap between the NFL Players' Association and the league in negotiations on lengthening the collective bargaining agreement. Even though the agreement runs through 2008, both sides would like to extend labor peace much sooner.
The union wants teams' local income counted as part of the overall revenues that go into the salary cap. So do several small-market teams, but the richer franchises are balking.
``I don't know if I am optimistic or pessimistic,'' Tagliabue said, ``because I think we have a long way to go.''
-- Touched on minority hiring, saying the league would concentrate on increasing its pool of qualified candidates for front-office posts. For now, teams won't be required to interview minorities for those jobs as they are for head coaching positions.
-- Praised Emmitt Smith for having ``greatness, grace and a lot of passion.'' Tagliabue said he expected the retired career rushing leader to stay affiliated with football, perhaps in an ownership capacity.
-- Said he had no role in deciding the halftime entertainment for Sunday's game, although he admitted ``we learned a lesson on the spot'' from the Janet Jackson/exposed breast fiasco in Houston last year.
Paul McCartney will be the sole headliner during halftime.
February 4, 2005
JACKSONVILLE, Fla. (AP) -- Commissioner Paul Tagliabue sent a veiled warning to ABC/ESPN on Friday that the league might get involved in creating a new sports TV network.
While the NFL already has extended agreements with Fox and CBS for its Sunday afternoon TV rights, negotiations on the prime-time packages with ABC and ESPN have stalled.
``We're giving very serious consideration to being part of the launch of another major sports network on cable and satellite television,'' Tagliabue said during his annual state of the NFL address at the Super Bowl.
A league source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Fox is interested in the prime-time games for the new sports network, which would compete with ESPN. The league wants to add Thursday night and Saturday night games, although not for the entire season.
``We're also talking to other television networks and companies about the packages we have to sell,'' Tagliabue said, ``including the Thursday night/Saturday package we're creating. And there's strong interest in other companies, some of whom already have contracts with us and some who don't.''
At one point, Fox was interested in buying the entire NFL package. But it settled for renewing its NFC Sunday afternoon rights for six years and $4.3 billion last November; CBS kept the AFC Sunday package for $3.7 billion. Both have agreed to be flexible so the NFL could move some better matchups from Sunday afternoon to prime time.
Tagliabue said ESPN/ABC ``have tremendous interest in staying with the NFL, both on cable television and broadcast television. We have an interest in them staying with us. We have a disagreement about what the rights fees should be.''
Neither Fox nor ABC returned calls for comment.
The current deals expire after the 2005 season.
By then, the NFL might have staged a game that counts outside U.S. borders. Tagliabue said the league is considering a game in Mexico or Canada, perhaps as soon as the upcoming schedule.
Prime candidates to sacrifice a game in their home stadium would be the Cardinals for Mexico or the Bills for Canada, although Tagliabue mentioned no specific teams.
And Tagliabue envisions preseason games in China leading up to the 2008 Beijing Olympics.
The commissioner also:
-- Vowed to have a franchise in Los Angeles by the end of the decade.
``What matters is two teams left L.A. a decade ago. We want to get back there, whether it's '08 or '09, it's going to be an unacceptably long period of time out of L.A.''
He didn't say if an expansion team or an established franchise would wind up in Southern California.
-- Expressed some concern about the gap between the NFL Players' Association and the league in negotiations on lengthening the collective bargaining agreement. Even though the agreement runs through 2008, both sides would like to extend labor peace much sooner.
The union wants teams' local income counted as part of the overall revenues that go into the salary cap. So do several small-market teams, but the richer franchises are balking.
``I don't know if I am optimistic or pessimistic,'' Tagliabue said, ``because I think we have a long way to go.''
-- Touched on minority hiring, saying the league would concentrate on increasing its pool of qualified candidates for front-office posts. For now, teams won't be required to interview minorities for those jobs as they are for head coaching positions.
-- Praised Emmitt Smith for having ``greatness, grace and a lot of passion.'' Tagliabue said he expected the retired career rushing leader to stay affiliated with football, perhaps in an ownership capacity.
-- Said he had no role in deciding the halftime entertainment for Sunday's game, although he admitted ``we learned a lesson on the spot'' from the Janet Jackson/exposed breast fiasco in Houston last year.
Paul McCartney will be the sole headliner during halftime.