This coming from the great John Ourand of Sports Business Journal/Sports Business Daily, it appears that Turner Sports will begin airing the NCAA Men’s Final Four™ and National Championship game starting next year, two years earlier than expected. When CBS and Turner combined to win the rights for the NCAA Men’s Basketball Tournament in 2010, one stipulation was that Turner’s TBS would begin airing the Final Four™ in 2016 and alternate with CBS every other year until the contract’s end in 2024.
With this being the 32nd year for CBS airing the NCAA Tournament, it appears its run of airing Final Fours consecutively starting in 1982 will end in 2013. However, it will continue airing the Final Four™ in 2015, 2017, 2019, 2021 and 2023. TBS will have the event in 2014, 2016, 2018, 2020, 2022 and 2024.
Ourand tweeted the following in the last hour:
It looks likely that Turner will televise the Final Four next year, two years ahead of schedule. Check tomorrow’s SBD for the story.
— John Ourand (@Ourand_SBJ) March 12, 2013
CBS and Turner are still talking. Nothing’s been signed yet. But several sources tell SBD that Turner is set to have the Final 4 next year.
— John Ourand (@Ourand_SBJ) March 12, 2013
This development certainly came out of left field and we’ll be monitoring for more developments on Tuesday.
UPDATE, 11:20 p.m.: Richard Sandomir of the New York Times also has a quick blurb on the story, but that may be updated throughout the night.
