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NFL Hires Goldman Sachs to Seek Investors for Media Businesses

NFL Hires Goldman Sachs to Seek Investors for Media Businesses

The National Football League has hired Goldman Sachs Group Inc. to seek potential investors in its media businesses, which include the NFL Network cable channel.

The process of finding a strategic partner could last through the end of the upcoming season, Commissioner Roger Goodell said Wednesday in a statement to employees. The league’s media operations include Red Zone, which is a subscription-based channel, the NFL.com website and additional content rights.

With the media business shifting rapidly to online viewing and the need for content accelerating, the league decided to seek additional partners for its in-house operations. The NFL renewed its contract with the players’ union in 2020 and reached long-term broadcast deals for games this year with a half-dozen media and tech companies.

“As the media industry continues to evolve, the NFL is exploring a strategic partnership to best position our owned and operated media assets for future growth,” the league said in a statement.

A spokesman for Goldman Sachs declined to comment. The Wall Street Journal reported earlier on the development.

The NFL Network had carried Thursday night games, but under a contract signed recently with Amazon.com Inc., the streaming giant will now have those exclusively. The network, which will continue to carry seven games exclusively, also moved into a new office and studio adjacent to SoFi Stadium in the Los Angeles area.

“Ownership continues to invest heavily in NFL Media and I couldn’t be more optimistic about our future,” Goodell said.

©2021 Bloomberg L.P.