Amanda opens the conversation by recapping the ESPN deal and the years of strategy and decision-making that went into producing it. “The No. 1 question everyone was asking,” Amanda says, was “Should (we) separate the Division 1 women’s basketball tournament from the rest of the NCAA sports?”
And as readers and listeners know, no unbundling ultimately took place. According to Amanda, NCAA Commissioner Charlie Baker decided that keeping women’s basketball in the package was “what was going to be best for the entire NCAA” because it would “give them exposure for a bunch of different sports, including women’s sports, which I wouldn’t have exposure to if they weren’t part of this package.
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Baker’s comments led Amanda and Gigi into a conversation about the gender disparities this deal could cause in the NCAA. Gigi raises the crucial point that while the NCAA “must follow Title 9 guidelines,” ESPN does not — implying that the network can get away with its treatment of NCAA women’s programs. Amanda shares this concern and highlights crucial elements of the deal, like units (AKA compensation) and timing that will impact sponsor involvement, particularly for women’s programs. “Basically, they have to buy the men,” Amanda explains, “and then they’ll be eligible for everything else.”
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