The NFL is discussing a deal with Paramount that could be worth up to an additional $1 billion

NFL and Paramount SkydanceRenewal talks on a deal to keep Sunday league games on CBS are starting to take shape, CNBC has learned.

NFL and CBS executives are negotiating a price increase, with a midpoint of the bid-ask spread of about 50% or 60%, according to two people familiar with the negotiations, who asked to remain anonymous because the discussions are private. CBS currently pays about $2.1 billion annually, on average, for its Sunday afternoon games, CNBC previously reported. The 50% increase means CBS will pay more than $3 billion in its next deal.

In exchange for increased revenue, the NFL will eliminate the opt-out clause after the 2029-30 season that it put into its original deal with Paramount, part of an 11-year agreement that runs through the end of the 2033-34 season. This clause would have given the league the opportunity to exit early.

CBS will begin paying the new fee as soon as next season for the next eight years for the same game package.

Paramount’s adjusted forecast for 2026 earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization is $3.6 billion. If Paramount merges with… Warner Bros. Discovery After regulatory approval, the combined company will have a revised EBITDA forecast of $18 billion, Paramount Chief Financial Officer Dennis Cinelli told investors this month.

“We have a great relationship with the NFL, and we expect that relationship to continue for the foreseeable future,” Paramount CEO David Ellison told CNBC earlier this month. “They are one of our most important partners, and we plan for them to remain one of our most important partners, having just had a historic season in partnership with them. And, you know, the ongoing negotiations, we’re not really in a position to comment on it. I promise we’ll share something as soon as we have something to say.”

Comcastnbc universal, Amazon Prime Video and Fox They are also subject to a 2029-30 opt-out clause in their deals. DisneyESPN and ABC have it until 2031.

The league chose to begin negotiations with Paramount’s CBS affiliate before any of its other media partners because the change-of-control clause — stemming from Skydance Media’s acquisition of Paramount Global — allows the NFL to break out of its deal by 2027.

The NFL may then negotiate with Fox after CBS because the terms of the deal should be similar — the two companies have Sunday afternoon packages, a person familiar with the matter said.

Fox currently pays slightly more than CBS for its lineup of games — about $2.2 billion, according to a person familiar with the matter. Fox will definitely look forward to [be] “Continuing this mutually beneficial relationship going forward” with the NFL, CEO Lachlan Murdoch said earlier this month at the Morgan Stanley Technology, Media and Telecoms Conference earlier this month at the Morgan Stanley Technology, Media and Telecoms Conference, but there have been no “material conversations” about a renewal yet.

The NFL also has not begun material discussions with Amazon, NBC or Disney, according to people familiar with the matter. It is unclear whether the league will look to move forward with a similar 50% increase for all three of these packages.

Some executives at NBC and Disney believe the relative power of their two packages — Sunday Night Football and Monday Night Football — has diminished as the NFL has given Amazon better games for Thursday Night Football in recent years, according to people familiar with the matter.

ESPN is already paying $2.7 billion for Monday Night Football. The 50% increase would mean ESPN would pay more than $4 billion for the package — a number Disney would likely reject, according to people familiar with the matter.

The timing and scope of the NFL’s new deals could have a significant impact on the value of other sports’ rights in the coming years.

The NHL currently has television deals with Disney and Warner Bros. Discovery, which expires after the 2028 season. Bettman had a number of conversations about renewing the deal before the NFL combine, according to two people familiar with the matter. However, he will likely have to wait until Paramount’s deal to acquire WBD closes before signing a new agreement.

“As with an ongoing relationship, you’re always talking about the future, and from our perspective it’s not in the context of the NFL,” NHL spokesman John Weinstein said.

Murdoch said last month that Fox would have to “rebalance” its sports portfolio once it pays the NFL.

Versant CEO Mark Lazarus said earlier this month that he was “prepared for the sports landscape to change” given the huge cost of the NFL. That could allow Versant, which owns USA Network and other cable channels, to buy sports broadcast rights like the NHL or MLB “that we might not otherwise be involved in,” he said.

Disclosure: Versant is the parent company of CNBC.