ESPN spoke with NBA, NFL about 'strategic partnership,' potential ownership stakes

Leaders at ESPN had early talks with the NBA and NFL about a "strategic partnership," which could lend to potential ownership stakes in the network, per Alex Sherman at CNBC.

Last week while joining other media leaders at the Allen & Company Sun Valley Conference, Walt Disney CEO Bob Iger told CNBC's David Farber that the company is considering selling some of its media operations but charted a different path for ESPN.

Iger said that he would be looking for a "strategic partner," but offered few details at the time other than stating that the union "could take the form of a joint venture or offloading an ownership stake."

Sherman reports that he and ESPN president Jimmy Pitaro have spoken with sports leagues about bringing them into the fold as minority owners, namely the NBA and NFL, which both have heavy presences on the network. 

Whether anything comes from those conversations in the immediate future is hard to determine, but Sherman notes that any further partnership between ESPN and either or both leagues would be a boost for Disney:

The move would be a logical one for Disney as it tries to move past the traditional cable subscriber model and underscores how badly the company wants to find a solution for the sports network as its linear subscribers decline. Still, ESPN ratings have climbed in recent years on major sporting events. There’s no better partner for sports content than the leagues, themselves.
Superficially, it may make less sense for the NBA and NFL, which sign lucrative media rights deals with many media partners that fuel team revenue and player salaries with a range of media companies.