The amount networks are paying to broadcast NFL games is skyrocketing
Bidding for the rights to broadcast the NFL's Thursday night games will open soon and the winning bid is expected to land somewhere between $600 million and $1.0 billion per year, a big jump over the $300 million CBS is currently paying the league.
If we estimate the value of the package at $800 million per year, that would mean the total cost to broadcast NFL games in the United States will surpass $7.0 billion in 2016, reaching $7.3 billion. That is nearly three times as much as the networks were paying just ten years ago ($2.6 billion).
The good news for the networks is that all of the deals are locked in until at least 2021. Depending on the length of the Thursday night package - the NFL reportedly wants this package to fall in line with the others in terms of length - there probably won't be another surge for 6-7 years.
