ESPN says it has renewed its "Monday Night Football" contract with the NFL for nearly $15.2 billion through 2021.
The eight-year extension will see ESPN paying $1.9 billion a year, 73 percent more than the $1.1 billion a year it has been spending for "Monday Night," The New York Times reported Thursday.
The agreement includes 17 MNF games a season through 2021, an additional 500 hours of new NFL-branded studio programming and rights for ESPN Spanish language and international networks, including regular season, playoff games and the Super Bowl in 144 countries, ESPN said in a release.
"Today, we've secured cable's most valuable television franchise, along with an enhanced international package of year-round multimedia rights," ESPN/ABC Sports president George Bodenheimer said.
The extension was announced by Bodenheimer and NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell.
"We are proud to extend our three-decade partnership with ESPN," Goodell said.