According to a new report, Apple has held early talks with the College Football Playoff tournament about a streaming deal, joining the sea of rumors relating to Apple’s interest in sports right.
The 12-team CFP tournament’s current media deal expires at the end of next year, so the group is holding discussions with possible future rights holders. Front Office Sports reports both Apple and Amazon have held preliminary talks so far.
Front Office Sports says that CFP is unlikely to divorce itself so much from the traditional broadcast networks, but it could make some of the games on its slate available to streaming platforms.
There have been a flurry of rumors about Apple talking with various sports leagues in the past few months, as the company looks to expand its sports offerings beyond MLS Season Pass and MLB Friday Night Baseball.
These include extended talks with the NFL for Sunday Ticket last year (Apple eventually bowed out and YouTube won the package), the NBA for upcoming basketball TV rights starting in 2025, and a potentially huge global streaming rights acquisition for Formula 1.
We know Apple is particularly hunting a deal for college sports, having almost signed a media deal with the Pac-12 before the conference collapsed. The College Football Playoffs are a reasonable target for Apple then, given that history.
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