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Morning Edition

January 8, 2026

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Only the ACC lets its teams keep every dollar from the College Football Playoff—but the other Power 4 conferences divvy up the cash differently.

Plus, in two exclusive Front Office Sports stories: WNBA players are pushing for 30% of gross revenue and a $10.5 million salary cap, with the league yet to counter [[link removed]], and the Yankees’ RSN has struck a deal with Comcast to preserve local access [[link removed]].

— Amanda Christovich [[link removed]], Annie Costabile [[link removed]], and Eric Fisher [[link removed]]

ACC Only Power Conference Giving CFP Teams 100% of Payout [[link removed]]

Jerome Miron-Imagn Images

The College Football Playoff offers more than $100 million to FBS conferences in prize payouts based on how their teams fare in the postseason. But because the money is sent to conferences, the conferences distribute the money to schools—and each has different policies for how they do so.

Among the power conferences, the ACC stands alone as the only conference that distributes 100% of prize payouts from the CFP to the schools that earned them. Schools in the Big Ten and Big 12 share the distributions earned equally, Front Office Sports has confirmed. The SEC has a hybrid model.

Here’s how the CFP distributions work: The CFP distributes $4 million for each school that earned a bid and another $4 million for participating in a quarterfinal (the top four ranked conference champions were each guaranteed $8 million regardless of whether they won their first-round game). The CFP distributes $6 million for every school that makes the semifinal and every team that makes the national championship. In addition, schools will get $3 million for each game they participate in to cover travel expenses.

As of the 2024–25 season, the ACC offers all prize payouts and all travel expenses to the school that earned them. Miami will keep the entire $14 million it earned from the CFP so far, FOS previously [[link removed]]reported; Clemson kept its $4 million last year, a Clemson spokesperson also confirmed. SMU also got all $4 million.

Meanwhile, the Big Ten and Big 12 add the money to a pool that is distributed equally to each program (though schools receive requisite travel expenses).

The SEC, however, appears to have a hybrid approach. Participating SEC teams in first-round games receive $3 million, with a visiting team getting a travel allowance “determined by the SEC Executive Committee,” according to league bylaws. Schools receive $3.5 million for participating in the quarterfinals, $3.75 million for participating in the semifinals, and $4 million for participating in the national championship. The money left over is added to the conference’s pool and distributed equally in shares for each SEC program and the conference office.

Meanwhile, in the Group of 6, the American Conference has taken an approach similar to that of the ACC. The conference has implemented a performance incentive program of its own, which mandates that Tulane receive $6.1 million of the $8 million the Green Wave earned for appearing in the CFP this year, a spokesperson tells FOS. The remaining $1.9 million will go to the conference-wide performance pool. Including extra money for travel expenses, the Green Wave will get $8.1 million.

SPONSORED BY SHEPPARD PRATT

Mental Health in Modern Sports

As the conversation around athlete wellness expands beyond physical performance, mental health has emerged as one of the most urgent and transformative topics in sports and business.

On Feb. 7—just one day before the Big Game—Future of Sports: The Mental Edge, presented by Sheppard Pratt [[link removed]], will convene leaders from across sports, media, and mental health for brunch to explore how organizations can prioritize mental well-being—from the locker room to the boardroom.

Through thought-provoking panels and intimate dialogue, the program will unpack the evolving dynamics of mental health in professional sports, the growing role of corporate and philanthropic leadership, and how high-profile moments are enhancing mental health conversations on and off the field.

Interested in joining? Request to attend now [[link removed]].

WNBA Hasn’t Countered Players’ Latest Offer As Deadline Closes In [[link removed]]

Rick Scuteri-Imagn Images

A little more than 48 hours ahead of the Jan. 9 deadline, the WNBA and WNBPA remain at odds over a new collective bargaining agreement.

According to sources familiar with negotiations, the union was still awaiting a response from the league to the proposal they submitted roughly two weeks ago as of Wednesday afternoon. In that proposal, players are seeking approximately 30% of gross revenue and a salary cap of about $10.5 million, sources confirmed to Front Office Sports.

Details of the union’s proposal were first reported by ESPN [[link removed]] last week. The league believes the proposal would result in $700 million in losses for the league and its teams over the duration of the CBA, according to that report.

“You’ve heard a lot of chatter about what we’re asking for is not sustainable for the business,” Napheesa Collier said during an Unrivaled broadcast Monday. “Being on this side with Unrivaled, I know what it takes to run a sustainable business. If they can’t find a model that makes it happen, they need to put people in place who can. We’ve proven that it is possible. There is a way. We’re thriving in that.”

Both sides agreed to a second extension hours before the CBA was set to expire on Nov. 30. Last month the WNBPA authorized a strike [[link removed]] in a vote that included 93% participation from players; 98% voted to allow the union’s executive committee to call a strike when necessary.

If both sides can’t agree to a third extension, a work stoppage—whether in the form of a lockout initiated by owners or strike initiated by players—would not be automatic. If neither side initiates a work stoppage, negotiations could instead enter a period of status quo. Under the terms of the current CBA, the players could not strike without terminating the extended agreement. But if negotiations are under status quo, the union could call a strike at any point.

The union’s proposal was a counter to one the league made in early December. The league had offered players 70% of net revenue, which sources familiar with negotiations believe equates to less than 15% of total league revenue. The salary cap would increase from $1.5 million to $5 million under the league’s latest proposal, and the league’s proposed revenue-sharing model would lead to max salaries of more than $1.3 million and average salaries exceeding $530,000. Over the duration of the deal, those numbers would climb to almost $2 million and $780,000, respectively.

EXCLUSIVE

Yankees RSN, Comcast End Yearlong Carriage Battle

YES Network has reached a full distribution agreement with Comcast, multiple sources told Front Office Sports, preserving local access for New York–area fans after nearly a year.

For more on how the agreement keeps YES on expanded basic cable and what it means for viewers, read Eric Fisher’s exclusive story here [[link removed]].

NBCU Betting on Big February Sports Run to Reignite Peacock Growth [[link removed]]

Jeff Hanisch-Imagn Images

NBCUniversal is using an unprecedented confluence of top-tier sports next month to help boost Peacock, its streaming service that, despite rising financial success, has seen its subscribers plateau.

The NBC Sports parent company will show the 2026 Winter Olympics from Italy, Super Bowl LX, the NBA All-Star Game, and the start of Sunday Night Basketball, all in the span of three weeks in February—forming a collection of top-tier programming that has been a top corporate focus [[link removed]] and is expected to set a series of viewership and revenue records.

While NBC itself and that broadcast television presence will be a central element of that coverage, so, too, will Peacock. Beyond a mix of simulcast and exclusive competition coverage, Peacock will also offer “Rinkside Live” and “Courtside Live,” with those features introducing several curated alternate camera angles, such as inside the coaching areas of figure skaters and team benches in ice hockey.

As has been the case with other big events such as the 2024 Paris Olympics, Peacock will also offer customized multiviews during the upcoming competitions.

The latest streaming features add to those Peacock has implemented for the arrival of NBA coverage [[link removed]] on the NBC platforms.

Streaming Metrics

The heightened push behind Peacock arrives as the service continues to increase its revenue and reduce its losses, but it still lags well behind many of its top competitors among general-entertainment streaming services.

At the end of 2025’s third quarter, corporate parent company Comcast said Peacock generated $1.4 billion in revenue, down slightly from the comparable period in 2024, while adjusted losses were cut by more than half to $217 million. Subscribers, however, remained flat at 41 million for the past three fiscal quarters, and that total furthered concern within the investment community [[link removed]]. That figure, in place between January and September 2025, is only 10 million more than what Peacock had at the end of 2023.

By comparison, Netflix has more than 300 million paid subscribers, Disney+ has 131.6 million subscribers, Hulu has 64.1 million subscribers, and Warner Bros. Discovery has 128 million streaming subscribers—most of it from its HBO Max that is part of a pending merger with Netflix [[link removed]].

The upcoming sports events, however, are a major part of a 2026 sports lineup on Peacock that includes 7,600 hours of live content spanning 20 different sports and more than 55 properties.

“The combined impact, whether it’s a simulcast [live event] on Peacock or an exclusive on Peacock … is an important part of our ability to take the DNA of NBC and bring it into a digital world,” Comcast co-CEO Mike Cavanagh tells Front Office Sports. “This is just part of what we want Peacock to be. Full stop. This does help build engagement, help build the service, and in our case, it goes hand-in-glove with the broadcast network.”

Comcast is set to report its fourth-quarter earnings on Jan. 29, in advance of the big sports events in February. The company also recently completed its spin-off with Versant [[link removed]].

SPONSORED BY ESPN EDGE

Inside ESPN’s Tech Future in Sports Media

The fifth annual ESPN Edge Innovation Conference [[link removed]] offered a clear look at where sports media is headed. From AI-powered production and automated highlights to immersive broadcasts and alternate telecasts, the event showed how technology is reshaping how fans discover, watch, and engage with live sports.

Leaders and partners walked through new workflows powering everything from real-time storytelling to a rebuilt direct-to-consumer platform designed to bring all of ESPN into one place. The takeaway was simple. Innovation is no longer experimental. It is embedded across the business as fan expectations continue to evolve.

👉 Check out more from the full article here [[link removed]].

Editors’ Picks Washington Considers Suing Former QB Demond Williams [[link removed]]by Amanda Christovich [[link removed]]Washington wants to hold Williams accountable for certain buyout provisions. TGL Ratings Hold Steady Despite ESPN Schedule Shift [[link removed]]by David Rumsey [[link removed]]The season opener had an audience of 646,000 viewers on ABC. FIFA’s $60 World Cup Tickets Come With a Major Catch [[link removed]]by Margaret Fleming [[link removed]]Only members of American Outlaws, Barra 76, and Sammers are eligible. Question of the Day

Should CFP payouts go entirely to the team that earned them or be shared by the conference?

ENTIRELY TO TEAM [[link removed]] SHARED BY CONFERENCE [[link removed]]

Wednesday’s result: 93% of respondents think John Harbaugh will be coaching another NFL team in 2026.

Advertise [[link removed]] Awards [[link removed]] Learning [[link removed]] Events [[link removed]] Video [[link removed]] Show [[link removed]] Written by Amanda Christovich [[link removed]], Annie Costabile [[link removed]], Eric Fisher [[link removed]] Edited by Matthew Tabeek [[link removed]], Catherine Chen [[link removed]]

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