The college football landscape continues to undergo dramatic shifts. Another seismic change could soon be forthcoming.
The Big 12 is reportedly exploring the possibility of selling the naming rights for the conference in a deal that could be worth hundreds of millions of dollars, ESPN reported Thursday.
College athletics has seen many major changes over the years. Just about every bowl game now has a corporate sponsor attached to its name. Athletes can earn money through name, image and likeness deals. Advertisers could soon start placing patches on jerseys.
Will the Big 12 be changing its name to open the doors to a new frontier for sponsorships? Here's what you need to know.
Will Big 12 become Allstate 12?
The Big 12 is reportedly exploring selling its naming rights, a move that would be among the largest sponsorship deals in collegiate athletics history, per ESPN.
The conference has been considering the option for the last six months, and a decision could be made in the coming months, per the report.
One possible partner for the deal could be Allstate insurance company, according to Yahoo Sports, which has floated the idea of renaming the conference the "Allstate 12." That is in line with conversations over the name would change for a potential sponsor: The conference would keep the "12" on the back of its name and change the "Big" to match the title sponsor, even though there will be 16 teams in the conference starting on July 1.
The Big 12 reportedly distributed about $470 million to its schools in 2023, and the number would only continue to climb with a new media deal in 2025-26, according to ESPN. Even with the new media deal, ESPN noted the amount going to member schools would be considerably less than the money going to schools in the Big Ten and SEC.
The conference could look to other avenues for adding money as well. CVC Capital Partners, a private equity firm, has reportedly been discussing the purchase of up to a 20% stake in the conference, which could infuse the conference with up to $1 billion, according to CBS Sports.
The money from the CVC Capital Partners deal would reportedly bring the conference "much closer" to the Big Ten's media rights contract. CBS Sports reports the Big Ten leads all conferences with approximately $75 million per year slated to be earned by each school.
Big 12 commissioner Brett Yormark reportedly has a prior relationship with CVC, according to CBS Sports.
"Every commercial opportunity the commissioner is bringing is a way to close the financial gap between the Big 12 and SEC," a Big 12 source told ESPN. "The No. 1 priority of the Big 12 is maintaining competitiveness, and these opportunities potentially help."
CVC has reportedly made plenty of deals with other leagues. It has interests in the Women's Tennis Association, Indian Premier League cricket team Gurajat Titans, LaLiga, Ligue de Football Professionel, Premiership Rugby and Six Nations Rugby United Ruby Championship.
