NFL Considers Selling Thursday Night Games

The National Football League (NFL) is considering selling the media rights for some of their regular-season games on Thursday nights.

A report from Reuters said that Steve Bornstein, President and CEO of the NFL Network and NFL executive vice president of media confirmed that talks were at an internal and early stage, with no guarantees a decision would be made to make the move.

Bornstein also confirmed that if the decision is made to sell a package of Thursday night games, some live games would be reserved for the NFL Network.

“There is no way that this channel won’t have live games,” Bornstein said. “It’s great content, and gives us an amazing platform to expand into other areas.”

Potential suitors of any new package include TBS, TNT and Fox Sports 1, according to sports consultant Marc Ganis, President of SportsCorp.

“NFL rights are unique in that people seek out the games on whatever channel they’re on, and don’t have to be spoon-fed promotions as they are with other entertainment or sports programs,” said Ganis, who helps negotiate TV sports deals.

“The NFL can help make a channel much more successful.”