The NCAA has reached a 14-year, multi-billion-dollar agreement with CBS and Turner Sports for the TV rights to an expanded Division I men's basketball tournament, according to multiple sources with knowledge of the negotiations.
The new-look tournament would start next year.
CBS in a press release confirmed a 12:30 ET teleconference to discuss a "future NCAA multi-media rights agreement."
The deal means interim NCAA President Jim Isch has decided to opt out of the final three years of the assocation's current 11-year, $6 billion contract with CBS. The new agreement would expand the men's tournament from 65 teams to anywhere from 68 to 96.
The NCAA has until July 31 to formally opt out of the existing CBS contract.
Terms of the anticipated new deal with CBS and Turner weren't immediately available, though they presumably would exceed the $710 million-per-year average due the NCAA in the final three years of the current agreement.
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