Mexico will soon have a fuller source of el fútbol americano.
Fox Corp. said it secured a new deal to show a wide range of NFL games via its Mexican outlets, including transmissions of “Thursday Night Football” and the Super Bowl, the latest example of deal-making between the sports organization and various U.S. media outlets as worries grow about the next tranche of media rights the league will seek amid the continued popularity of its games.
Under terms of the new pact, Fox will be able to show NFL games and other events to Mexican audiences via its linear TV operations as well as via the Fox One streaming service and even its ad-supported streamer Tubi. Fox will also show four weekly original programs dedicated to the NFL that have been developed especially for fans in Mexico, including two editions of a fantasy football-focused show.
The overall package of games will include Thursday Night Football, regular-season Sunday games, Thanksgiving games, all NFC playoff matches, Pro Bowl games and the Super Bowl.
The deal surfaces as speculation grows that the NFL may seek to utilize an “opt-out” clause in its current contracts with Fox, Paramount Skydance, NBCUniversal and Amazon to renegotiate rights deals and gain sizable increases in the fees it collects from the media companies. The league believes it can get more value from its carriage pacts, according to a person familiar with the matter, particularly given the increases in fees the NBA was recently able to gain with new alliances with Disney’s ESPN, Amazon and NBC.
“Mexico is a market with an enormous passion for football, and we are proud to offer fans a sizeable NFL package in the country, with a robust content experience, designed to engage audiences throughout the entire year,” said Carlos Martínez, executive vice president of Fox’s Latin American operations.
More to come…