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FOX Sports Showcases Tom Brady, Derek Jeter at 2024 Upfront

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FOX Sports Showcases Tom Brady, Derek Jeter at 2024 Upfront

During the 2024 FOX Upfront, the company showcased its offerings across its portfolio of sports, news and entertainment. Coming off an NFL on FOX season in which the “America’s Game of the Week” broadcast window finished No. 1 among adults 18-49 for the 15th consecutive year, along with the NFL playoffs averaging 44.7 million viewers, the network is looking to build off of that momentum. Towards the back end of the event, the network introduced its new lead NFL analyst Tom Brady, who is starting his first season with the network as part of a reported 10-year deal worth $375 million. The seven-time Super Bowl champion came out on the stage after he was introduced by FOX NFL Sunday analyst Michael Strahan complete with smoke effects and a round of applause.

“Walking out of my first meeting with FOX, it reminded me so much of the amazing teammates that I had over a long period of time,” Brady said, “and life is always about who you’re spending time with and the great positive things you’re doing, so to be a part of the game that I love with the league that I love, and obviously to be a part of the greatest telecast in football every single week is ultimately what made my decision. It wasn’t that amazing robot that spikes the ball on the ground that reminded me of Gronk all the time as we go in and out of breaks… but just the tremendous team that we have here made it a no-brainer for me.”

Strahan revealed that Brady’s inaugural game broadcast will feature the Dallas Cowboys, making it the first time the team will be featured to open the season on the network since the 2019 season. The Cowboys will take on the Cleveland Browns on Sunday, Sept. 8 at 4:25 p.m. EST for Brady’s broadcast debut. Strahan later reminded attendees that Brady’s first championship came in Super Bowl XXXVI, which took place in New Orleans, La., the home of this year’s Super Bowl LIX. FOX Sports will broadcast the contest to conclude its second season under an 11-year media rights deal with the National Football League worth a reported $2.2 billion annually.

“I had the great Coach Madden on the call and Pat Summerall,” Brady recalled of his first Super Bowl. “Being in New Orleans and get to that game and when I see highlights of that game, I get goosebumps. The fact that it’s on FOX in New Orleans is a lot of nostalgia, it is.”

Joining Brady on the forthcoming Super Bowl LIX broadcast and throughout the year on NFL on FOX games includes play-by-play announcer Kevin Burkhardt and reporters Erin Andrews and Tom Rinaldi. All of his colleagues were present for the FOX Upfront event and expressed their excitement and anticipation about being able to work with Brady, highlighting what he brings to the table.

“We’re excited. How can you not be excited?” Burkhardt said. “We’re talking about the most clutch player in the history of the NFL that I get to stand next to every week; that’s pretty good. I think about this – two minutes left in a big game, tie game, who better to analyze it than Tom Brady? No pressure, TB, none at all.”

“A lot of people may not know this about TB,” Andrews said. “He is one of the best storytellers out there. I’ve had an opportunity away from the field to listen to some of these stories. My knee starts bouncing; I get so excited. I cannot wait for our millions of viewers to get an inside look at some of those stories when [he is] talking about the Dallas Cowboys.”

“EA talks about her excitement,” Rinadli added. “Can you imagine the excitement that players and coaches are going to feel when Tom goes into a production meeting and they’re sharing their stories and their strategies with him. We know they’re going to bring their absolute best on Sunday because TB’s in that booth.”

FOX Sports will bring fans complete coverage of Super Bowl LIX from New Orleans including its portfolio of daily FS1 studio shows, along with a new Tubi purple carpet that will provide behind-the-scenes content before the championship game hosted by Olivia Culpo. The FOX NFL Sunday pregame show will also continue its tradition from broadcasting at a different military installation around the world when it visits the U.S. Navy Seals in Coronado, Calif. Studio analyst Rob Gronkowski skydove out of an airplane last year, and while the team struggles to think about how they will top the on-site show each year, they ultimately find a way to do so.

“The Seals do not mess around, and Seals and every one of our heroes in uniform – they inspire us with their dedication, determination and of course, with their courage,” Strahan said. “They go towards danger, and they stand strong on the frontline to keep us free.”

Outside of the network’s NFL property, FOX Sports will continue bringing viewers marquee college football matchups on Big Noon Saturday. The network has announced that it will broadcast the second game of the year for the defending national champion Michigan Wolverines as they face the Texas Longhorns in Ann Arbor, Mich. Colorado Buffaloes head coach Deion Sanders joined Big Noon Saturday play-by-play announcer Gus Johnson at the FOX Upfront where he previewed the upcoming season and stated that the team intends to be part of the expanded 12-team College Football Playoff.

“When Deion has a game, everybody watches,” Johnson said. “We called the TCU-Colorado game; we had no idea. Nine million people…. [and] it got better and better. How did you like coaching at Colorado?”

“I loved it,” Sanders said, “but just the atmosphere; just the Power Five atmosphere and what you all bring to the table, I absolutely love it.”

Derek Jeter and Álex Rodríguez were also present at the FOX Upfront where they discussed the forthcoming broadcast of “MLB at Rickwood Field: A Tribute to the Negro Leagues,” taking place on Thursday, June 20. The oldest professional ballpark in the United States will host a matchup between the St. Louis Cardinals and San Francisco Giants that will be broadcast live on FOX and feature the network’s MLB on FOX Pregame show.

“Let me start off by saying I couldn’t be prouder of the fact that FOX has this game,” Jeter said. “We get a chance to pay tribute to the Negro Leagues…. Me personally, I wouldn’t be where I am today if it weren’t for the sacrifices and courage of these men that played in the Negro Leagues.”

Earlier in the Upfront event, Erin Andrews revealed that FOX Sports will broadcast a college basketball matchup between the USC Trojans and UConn Huskies on Saturday, Dec. 21. The game will feature some of the biggest stars in the college game with USC guard JuJu Watkins and UConn guard Paige Bueckers, representing a rematch of the regional final that took place in March. The Huskies will aim to extend a three-game winning streak against the Trojans as they look to attain another National Championship.

“We’ve been the leader in women’s sports for the past 10 years, and this year, we got another huge W,” Andrews said. “We featured 14 women’s NCAA matchups this season, a record on any broadcast network, and it paid off big time. Viewership more than doubled.”

Jeff Collins, the president of advertising sales, marketing and brand partnerships for the FOX Corporation, explained within the presentation that FOX is looking to create impact for media brands. Advertisers on the network reached more consumers than any other media company in the fourth company with nearly one-third less frequency. Collins also stated that the network is the only major media company to grow its ad-supported audience since the Upfront presentations in 2020. With a presidential election, Super Bowl and World Cup all taking place down the road, FOX is able to invest into fully ad-supported content with its growing audiences.

“As we all look ahead, we know the Upfronts – it’s a futures market – and you’ll all decide which future to invest in,” Collins said, addressing the attendees. “Together with FOX, the future is clear. By relentlessly focusing our resources into the areas that are most important to you, we will all thrive and we will all grow for the long term. Now let’s go create some of those opportunities together.”

John Sterling Hosts 90 Minute Show on WFAN

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John Sterling Hosts 90 Minute Show on WFAN

On April 15, New York Yankees play-by-play announcer John Sterling announced his retirement, effective immediately. He had been behind a microphone for 65 years and as it turns out, he didn’t go a full month without coming back on the air. While not calling a Yankees game, he did do a 90-minute call-in show over the weekend and led WFAN up to its pregame baseball coverage.

“Live From the ‘Evan and Tiki Studio‘ here at WFAN, this is John Sterling and I’m here for an hour and a half before the Yankee game, how noteworthy,” Sterling said as the show began.

“Now, some of you know that I am retired,” he continued. “So, what am I doing here? The General Manager Chris Oliviero…he thought I should come in because some people didn’t have a chance to say goodbye and I’m all for it. But I’m also for, you know I watch every game. Being retired is fabulous. I see every Yankee game every Met game, I listen to every Yankee game and Met game, and then the Knicks and the Rangers and the rest of the basketball and hockey playoffs. Anyway, I don’t miss a game.”

Then he gave out the phone number and the calls poured in.

Sterling, it seemed, would have much preferred to talk Yankees baseball or about the basketball and hockey playoffs. But, as one could imagine, everybody who called in wanted to thank Sterling for his years calling games and many were emotional speaking to him as they shared their thoughts, memories and well-wishes.

One caller asked Sterling what retirement has been like and he said, “Basically living a very easy life…I’ve had a wonderful time. Dinners with friends and family…It’s been wonderful and it’s going to stay wonderful too.”

The show was filled with great memories from both those that called in as well as Sterling.

“I guess it’s time to hit the road jack, huh?” Sterling said as the show wrapped up. “I loved being here. I loved it as much as you can imagine. Think of how lucky I am to hear all these wonderful things for the last hour and a half. Upcoming is Yankee baseball as the Yankees try to make it two in a row against Tampa. And who knows where we will meet each other next but you know what, we are going to meet each other next, I don’t know where, I don’t know when, but I believe it. This is John Sterling. Thank you so much for listening. I am a very lucky person and I wish you all the very, very best.”

WGN Radio Scores 2 Wins at 47th Annual Peter Lisagor Awards

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WGN Radio Scores 2 Wins at 47th Annual Peter Lisagor Awards

The 47th annual Peter Lisagor Awards were held Friday, with WGN Radio bringing home two honors from the prestigious event.

John Williams and Pete Zimmerman took home the award for Best Interview (Audio or Video) for its coverage of how The Daily Northwestern uncovered the story about hazing inside the Northwestern University football program that ultimately led to the ouster of longtime head coach Pat Fitzgerald.

Additionally, WGN Radio won the award for Best Feature Reporting Single Story/Episode (Audio) for Dave Schwan’s report on “A Village to New Philadelphia: Freedom on the Illinois Prairie.”

The awards honor the best journalism produced in Illinois and northwest Indiana from across print, digital, and broadcast media.

Roku to Broadcast ‘Sunday Leadoff’ in Multi-Year Deal with MLB

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Roku to Broadcast ‘Sunday Leadoff’ in Multi-Year Deal with MLB

Major League Baseball has announced that Roku has agreed to an exclusive multi-year media rights deal to broadcast live Sunday morning games under the Sunday Leadoff package. The slate of games will begin this Sunday, May 19 on The Roku Channel with a matchup between the St. Louis Cardinals and Boston Red Sox. The schedule for Roku includes 18 games that run through September 15 featuring bonafide contenders and dynamic superstars up and down the lineup, most of which will serve as the first game of the day. Roku has an exclusivity window during the time in which it airs games as well, all of which start at 1:05 p.m. EST or earlier outside of two games taking place in the Pacific Standard Time Zone (PST).

“As television programming, live sports, and the leagues have fragmented across networks, apps, and multiple packages, Roku –home to all of them– plays an increasingly crucial role for viewers and advertisers,” Charlie Collier, president of Roku Media, said in a statement. “With this deal, Roku delivers free, live, weekly Sunday baseball and 24/7 baseball curation, destinations, and channels across our platform. The lead-in to all of television is now the lead-off for Sunday baseball as well. It’s a terrific partnership.”

In addition to these live Sunday Leadoff games, Roku is also adding an MLB Zone to its platform that will allow baseball fans to find live and upcoming games, along with nightly recaps and highlights. Moreover, an MLB free ad-supported television (FAST) channel will be available through Roku as well along with other integrations through the platform. The FAST channel itself will contain baseball content such as Game of the Week replays, Minor League Baseball game replays and baseball highlights.

“With free games available to anyone, MLB games on Roku will be widely accessible to fans,” Noah Garden, MLB deputy commissioner of business and media, said in a statement. “Since Roku serves as an entertainment gateway for millions, this partnership offers a valuable new promotional and distributional platform for MLB games and content.”

Live game telecasts for Sunday Leadoff will be produced in collaboration with Major League Baseball and feature broadcast teams focused in the local markets. For this Sunday’s matchup, St. Louis Cardinals television play-by-play announcer Chip Caray will serve in the same role, along with Will Middlebrooks as the analyst and Alexa Datt as the reporter.

NBCUniversal’s Peacock had previously been the streaming home of the Sunday game package in what was reportedly a two-year deal worth $60 million. Ahead of the year, the two sides were unable to reach an agreement to sustain the broadcast property on the OTT streaming service. MLB had also streamed games on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube in the past as it worked to expand its presence on digital media outlets.

Ben Shapiro: Ad Revenue Key for Podcast Industry to Remain ‘Platform for All Viewpoints’

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Ben Shapiro: Ad Revenue Key for Podcast Industry to Remain ‘Platform for All Viewpoints’

Ben Shapiro and Jeremy Boreing have turned The Daily Wire into a digital media juggernaut, with a strong focus on podcasts. Shapiro believes for that growth to continue the company needs the support of advertisers from a wide variety of backgrounds.

While speaking at the IAB Podcast Upfront last week, Shapiro discussed the growth of podcast space, but also the lack of growth in the current event/political sphere.

He pushed ad buyers to not listen to pushback they might receive on social media for purchasing time on podcasts like The Ben Shapiro Show.

“I understand why companies, including our own, use a lot of these social media as feedback loops to test the temperature of an audience on what was going on. But it’s not real,” Shapiro said, according to Podcast News Daily. “Twitter is a place filled with bots and foolish people, and there is no reason why you should be led around by the nose. That’s not your audience, it actually is not.

“And that’s true in virtually all social media. Your audience are the people who are buying your product. If you see a decline in sales, that’s a reason to cut off advertising. Just because some schmuck calls your office three times from a phone number that you don’t recognize is probably not a great reason to start rethinking your entire advertising strategy.”

Ben Shapiro said that when he and Boreing launched the company in 2015, many advertisers were hesitant to partner with conservative content. And while some may still be weary of the partnership, he argued it is not only good for those companies, but it’s also good for the nation.

“As we navigate this election year, you might not always side with what I say or what The Daily Wire stands for. And that’s okay,” Shapiro said. “I remain bullish that the podcast industry will continue to be a platform for all viewpoints. In order for that to remain the case, I hope that you all consider sponsoring all the sides, not just the ones that you personally agree with. Because there are audiences all across the political spectrum. It’s good for your business, and it’s very good for the country.”

77 WABC Owner John Catsimatidis: Rudy Giuliani ‘Forced My Hand’ By Talking About 2020 Election Results

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77 WABC Owner John Catsimatidis: Rudy Giuliani ‘Forced My Hand’ By Talking About 2020 Election Results

The fallout of the decision by 77 WABC owner John Catsimatidis to cancel The Rudy Giuliani Show continues, with the billionaire defending himself from criticism by the former New York Mayor.

Giuliani’s afternoon show was ended Friday after he continually refused to adhere to company policies regarding discussions around the validity of the 2020 presidential election. A former attorney for former President Donald Trump, Giuliani has maintained that the election was rigged against his former boss and was not fairly won by Joe Biden. He is facing charges in both Georgia and Arizona for his attempts to overturn election results in those states.

On Sunday morning, Catsimatidis appeared on the New York news/talk station to discuss the situation with hosts Dominic Carter and Curtis Sliwa. He shared that lawyers for Dominion Voting Systems — who secured a $787.5 million settlement from Fox News in 2023 — had contacted the company saying that Newsmax argued that if it was going to be sued by the election machine company, WABC should also be a potential target.

John Catsimatidis revealed the company implemented a policy station it would not talk about Dominion, or any electronic voting machine companies, and has not revised that policy since.

He then shared that Giuliani — who has filed for bankruptcy after being ordered to pay $150 million to two former Georgia election officials for defamation — had given the company an ultimatum.

“On Thursday night, Rudy gave us an ultimatum saying ‘You gotta double my hours or else.’ Between the ultimatum and his attempt to talk about the electronic voting machines, management made a decision on Friday to suspend him for the day until we have time to sit down and discuss things,” Catsimatidis revealed. “We always discuss things here internally.”

The owner then said either he misspoke or The New York Times misquoted him Friday, as he said the initial decision was simply to suspend Rudy Giuliani, not cancel his program. However, when the former New York Mayor took to social media to denounce Catsimatidis, Red Apple Media, and 77 WABC leaders, he decided to permanently end the program.

In a statement provided to Barrett News Media by a company spokesperson, John Catsmiatidis reiterated the ultimatum given by Giuliani.

“Last Tuesday, May 7th, Mayor Giuliani gave me an ultimatum. He texted me that I had to double his airtime and compensation by May 28th. I told him I wanted to sit down in person to discuss this. He repeated his demand on Wednesday, May 8th.”

Catsimatidis then argued it appeared as if Rudy Giuliani was attempting to force the company to suspend or fire him.

“Given his recent ultimatum, his direct violation of an agreement he signed to not talk about electronic voting machines, and his absolute refusal to abide by company policy, the company had no choice but to suspend him last Friday, pending further discussions,” Catsimatidis wrote. “All we wanted to do was suspend him until we could have a sit-down meeting in person, as I communicated with him. However, his actions this weekend appeared to be an attempt to force my hand.”

NBC Sports Acquires Additional NFL Regular Season Game

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NBC Sports Acquires Additional NFL Regular Season Game

NBC Sports has acquired the broadcasting rights to an additional regular season NFL game to be broadcast on Saturday, Dec. 21 across NBC, Peacock and Telemundo. The additional Week 16 matchup will mark the first time NBCUniversal will broadcast Saturday and Sunday games during that week since the 1997 season. For NBC, this follows last season when the network’s Sunday Night Football property attained a total audience delivery averaging 21.4 million viewers during the regular season. The metric rendered the property the No. 1 show in prime-time television for the 13th consecutive year, extending its streak that began in the 2011-12 campaign.

“We’re excited to work with our partners at the NFL to acquire an additional game for NBCUniversal platforms at a crucial point in the playing season,” Rick Cordella, president of NBC Sports, said in a statement. “With two NFL games in exclusive windows on the last December weekend before the holidays, we continue to deliver for our owned-stations, affiliates and partners.”

NBCUniversal presented three games during Wild Card Weekend last season, including a matchup exclusively on Peacock that averaged 23 million viewers across platforms, making it the most-streamed event in U.S. history. Although NBCUniversal is not expected to have a Peacock exclusive playoff game this season, it will broadcast the Green Bay Packers and Philadelphia Eagles opening game from São Paulo, Brazil exclusively on the Peacock streaming platform. This marks the NFL’s first opening weekend game on a Friday since 1970 and the first time the league will ever play a game in Brazil.

NBC will also open the 2024 regular season with the NFL Kickoff game between the defending Super Bowl champion Kansas City Chiefs and Baltimore Ravens, a rematch of the AFC Championship. The NFL will reveal the full 272-game regular season schedule this Wednesday at 8 p.m. EST on NFL Network, NFL.com, the NFL app and NFL+. Mike Tirico, lead Sunday Night Football broadcaster, will make a guest appearance on the program where the property’s slate of games is expected to be revealed. The property falls under flex scheduling jurisdiction that can be used up to two times between Weeks 5 and 10 and at the discretion of the league between Weeks 11 and 17.

NBCUniversal is currently entering the second season of an 11-year media rights deal with the National Football League that enables the company to present Sunday Night Football games in prime time television. The company is also reportedly trying to acquire a package of National Basketball Association games that, if successful, would bring the league back to its airwaves for the first time since 2002. NBCUniversal will broadcast the Olympic Games Paris 2024 this summer and provide a multifaceted array of viewership options as part of its media rights deal with the International Olympic Committee that runs through 2032.

Megyn Kelly: NBC News Uses Same Tactics Alex Wagner Argues Don’t Exist

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On MSNBC last week, host Alex Wagner argued that statements made by Donald Trump’s legal team aren’t prevalent in journalism. Megyn Kelly believes Wagner is ignorant about the real operations of her own network.

During The Megyn Kelly Show, the former NBC News host said the network uses the same strategies that the National Enquirer used to help Donald Trump in 2016.

“The media started to sneer at the National Enquirer’s tactics, and I’m not defending their tactics. We all know what the National Enquirer is and what it does, but I made the point at the time that their sanctimony was a bit misplaced, because I knew very well — from my time over in broadcast news and cable for that matter — that these networks, especially the big ones, also pay for stories,” said Kelly.

“They may go out there on the air and act holier than thou, ‘We would never do that. We’d never pay for a story.’ What they do, and I said at the time, you know how they do it. They pay ‘licensing fees’ for somebody’s exclusive photos. And it’s just a backdoor scuzzy way of doing what you’re not allowed to do through the front door.”

Kelly then aired a clip of Wagner suggesting that asking people to sign non-disclosure agreements, utilizing a “catch-and-kill” PR strategy, and paying sources for stories does not happen. “That is not how the world works,” she suggested.

“She is clueless. NDAs happen all the time, especially at NBC. Some of the people on this panel may have had to sign one, I’m just saying,” Kelly, the former NBC News host, said. “And I could give you a long list of women who have been silenced by NBC News, her news organization, because of what her male colleagues have done, alright? So wake up, sweetheart. Read a newspaper every once in a while instead of struggling on a teleprompter like you always do.”

Mike Breen: Conveying Objectivity is a ‘Matter of Concentration’

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Throughout the NBA Playoffs, ESPN play-by-play announcer Mike Breen has been behind the microphone for several signature moments as teams square off in a quest to hoist the Larry O’Brien Trophy. Breen, who is part of the lead announcing team for the NBA on ESPN, works alongside analysts Doris Burke and JJ Redick and sideline reporter Lisa Salters for a majority of the contests. The team was recently on the call for the New York Knicks’ Game 3 matchup against the Indiana Pacers on Friday night and documented a clutch three-point shot from Andrew Nembhard that turned out to be a game-winning basket.

Breen called the sequence with a sense of excitement and anticipation in his voice, trying to be objective despite also serving as the Knicks television play-by-play announcer during the regular season on MSG Networks. Dan Le Batard referred to Breen as a “pillar of professionalism,” but asserted that there was some legitimate disappointment as he narrated the moment that sealed the game for the Pacers.

“I believe his heart was totally broken in that spot and he was trying to conceal it,” Le Batard said. “Because this is a lovable Knicks team and how can he not be emotional, but he tries not to be biased; he tries to be objective and it’s a human illusion.”

Indiana continued its momentum during Game 4 on Sunday to even the series at two games a side heading back to Madison Square Garden on Tuesday night. Breen discussed the series within his appearance on Monday’s edition of The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz, but he also met with an accusation from Le Batard about being biased and corrupt. Breen was incredulous as to why Le Batard would do such a thing so early in the morning, explaining that he turned on the Zoom call and immediately heard the phrase “guttural bang” from Le Batard. The show then replayed the call, leading Breen to cover his ears.

“Why are you covering your ears?,” Le Batard asked. “Are you like Gene Hackman? [He] couldn’t watch himself act. He wouldn’t watch his own movies. You can’t listen to yourself call a game?”

“No, you get sick of hearing the screaming fool,” Breen replied. “I’ve heard it already.”

Le Batard asked Breen to rank where the call of Nembhard’s game-deciding three-point basket would rank in being able to conjure the setting and magnitude of the moment. Breen outlined that he does not rank his calls but evinces that if one makes such a difference in a playoff game, it is likely high on the list.

“You know at the end of a great playoff game, the last two minutes [is] one of the most magical things in sports – a close playoff game in the last two minutes,” Breen said. “That game felt like the entire second half was played under those circumstances, so for then [Jalen] Brunson to go hit that big shot in a game that he had struggled, and then for Nembhard to come down and the most unlikeliest guy in a possession that was about to fall apart, it’s the surprise of the moment.”

Breen has a genuine adoration for the game of basketball and attributed his excitement to being a fan of the sport. Le Batard conveyed that it is clear Breen enjoys the games, but the fact that he roots for the Knicks is also palpable. Nonetheless, he has rarely been criticized in the national broadcasting space for being biased, prompting Le Batard to ask how he keeps a sense of objectivity.

“I try my very best when I put the headset on – and there’s so many things that are going on – that you have to do your job not just for you, but for your partners; for everybody in the truck to do a professional job,” Breen said. “So you just have to, and I’ve done it over the years. I haven’t done it a lot in recent years because the Knicks haven’t been in these kind of big playoff positions in recent years, but it’s a matter of concentration, making sure that you give that particular play the proper call that it deserves.”

Reflecting back on the play-by-play call, Breen is cognizant of the fact that some Knicks fans may not be content with him pertaining to the situation. He hopes that they are able to understand that he is just trying to do his job and effectuate a stellar national presentation. Nonetheless, it is something that announcers who broadcast both at the regional and national levels have had to face over the years.

“Every announcer goes through this, especially in the postseason when fans’ emotions are high, and they should be high and they should be fired up for their team that they always think that you’re rooting for the other team,” Breen said. “It happens every single postseason. This one is just a little different because I’m the regular-season announcer for the Knicks.”

NASCAR Adding In-Season Tournament to be Aired by TNT Sports

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NASCAR Adding In-Season Tournament to be Aired by TNT Sports

NASCAR revealed plans for a new element in the upcoming season of races. In partnership with TNT Sports, the 2025 Cup Series schedule will include an in-season tournament using a bracket-style format.

The previous three races, streamed on Prime Video, will determine the rankings for the tournament as the governing body experiments with the new format during the first season of its groundbreaking seven-year media contract.

“With the launch of our new media rights partnerships in 2025, we were excited to partner with Prime Video and TNT Sports to collaborate on fan engagement concepts that drive story lines in our sport and innovation from a production perspective,” said Brian Herbst, NASCAR SVP, media and productions, in a press release. “Having head-to-head driver matchups for each one of TNT’s NASCAR Cup Series races will add a compelling fan engagement element across media platforms like TNT, Bleacher Report, House of Highlights and NASCAR digital platforms.”

All drivers are allowed to participate in the seeding races, and out of those events, the top 32 drivers will be chosen to compete in the in-season tournament. Seeding for this tournament will be determined by the driver’s best finish in the three races, with tiebreakers being decided by their next-best finishes and then their season points position. During the in-season tournament on TNT Sports and Max, drivers will go head-to-head, and the one with the higher finishing position will advance to the next round. After five rounds, the winner of the tournament will be awarded a grand prize of $1 million.

“It’s never been a better time to be a fan of motorsports, and this new first-ever in-season tournament will bring a new competitive dynamic to NASCAR’s summer race weekends,” said Craig Barry, executive vice president and chief content officer, TNT Sports. “TNT Sports has always been at the forefront of creativity and innovation, and NASCAR is a perfect partner to bring this vision to life across our networks and platforms.”

“We’re excited to be part of NASCAR’s first in-season tournament next season,” said Charlie Neiman, head of sports partnerships, Prime Video. “This tournament will showcase the league’s ability to drive innovation and engage fans with increased competition during a key part of the NASCAR schedule.”

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