FOX will be the US television network in charge of broadcasting the Super Bowl that the Philadelphia Eagles will play against the Kansas City Chiefs this Sunday, February 9. Additionally, it will have the extra attraction of being the debut of Tom Brady as a commentator at the country’s premier sporting event.
But how much did FOX have to pay to secure the television rights for the NFL's grand final? Directly nothing, indirectly several billion.
Here we will explain how the broadcast of an event that attracts over 100 million viewers on the second Sunday of February works.
Why will FOX broadcast Super Bowl LIX?
According to the latest contract that came into effect in 2023, the NFL rotates the Super Bowl among the four major television networks with which it has contracts for broadcasting regular season games: FOX, CBS, NBC, and ESPN/ABC.
Amazon's Prime Video, which broadcasts Thursday night games, is excluded from the rotation as it is a streaming signal and not open like the others. For the same reason, ESPN was not considered between 2006 and 2022 because it is a cable signal.
The new rotation started last season with CBS, this year it belongs to FOX, in 2026 it will be on NBC and in 2027 it will return to ABC in partnership with ESPN (both channels are part of the Disney group).
The current agreement, which is for 11 years and for which the four networks paid a total of 110 billion dollars, will be in effect until 2034.
The Super Bowl brings in great profits for the channels.
TV networks take advantage of the Super Bowl to make huge profits thanks to advertising investment.
In 2024, CBS set a record with almost 700 million dollars paid by brands, and this year the figure should be even higher, as FOX will charge up to 8 million for a 30-second advertisement slot, with a commercial lineup that has been completely sold out since November of last year.