Apple is taking the reins of the Super Bowl halftime show from Pepsi and possibly some Sunday football games.
Key Details
- Winning out over PepsiCo, Apple has taken sponsorship of one of the most watched shows—the Super Bowl halftime show.
- Apple is trying to broaden its horizons by taking a step into sports.
- The tech giant is in talks with the NFL to secure Sunday Ticket, a package of Sunday football games.
- This marks a new venture for Apple as it replaces long-time sponsor Pepsi for the halftime show.
Why it’s news
Apple is attempting to widen its audience to sporting fans. The company has been working with the NFL to secure some Sunday football games for its streaming services, in the midst of working deals the company agreed to sponsor the halftime show.
Apple rarely sponsors events out of its control like big sporting events, but the company is trying to gain more subscribers on its streaming service, Apple TV+, and broadcasting one of the most popular sports in history is a great way to do so.
Apple has been trying to secure Sunday Ticket for its streaming services, but has not come to a final deal with the NFL.
The NFL has been seeking as much as $2.5 billion for rights to Sunday Ticket, about $1 billion more than what it collects from its current provider, DirecTV, according to The New York Times.
Last year, the NFL cut ties with many major sports networks CBS, NBC, and ESPN in an effort to shift its broadcasting to streaming services. The league has been discussing the rights to Sunday Ticket with Google, Amazon and ESPN but the only major negotiations have been with Apple.
