Welcome to Office Chair Sports! Your home for everything Sports & Biz! Today, we’re covering top news about:

• NFL Using AI

• ESPN New Streaming App

• NBC + MLB $600M Deal

• SEC New 9 Game Schedule

Together with RallyFuel

1) NFL Using AI To Enhance Game Day Analytics

The NFL and Microsoft have extended their partnership to bring Microsoft Copilot and Azure AI to the league. Teams will get over 2,500 new Microsoft Surface tablets to provide coaches and players with real-time data and analysis on the sidelines. The AI will help with everything from quickly analyzing plays during a game to managing salary caps and scouting players. Microsoft is also working on AI-powered video tools for practices and an AI fan guide for events. The goal is to get information to people faster, not to have the AI make decisions.

Microsoft and NFL announce multiyear partnership to use AI to enhance game day analysis

2) ESPN Launching New Streaming App

ESPN is launching a new flagship streaming app. It's the first time the network's full suite of content, including live linear channels, is available in one place. The new service offers two main plans:

• ESPN Unlimited: The all-access plan for $29.99/month.

• ESPN Select: The new name for the existing ESPN+ service, priced at $11.99/month.

Subscribers can also get bundles with Disney+ and Hulu, and a new bundle with Fox One is coming in October. Existing cable subscribers get the new app's features for free, while current ESPN+ subscribers will automatically be moved to the Select plan.

Disney’s new ESPN flagship streaming app launches

NIL

A new platform has launched and it’s changing the way fans can interact with athletes! Join the ultimate college sports experience. Support rising athletes through NIL, predict game outcomes, compete for exclusive prizes, and connect with passionate fans in community discussion boards. Rule The Fuel.

3) NBCUniversal & MLB In Talks of $600M Deal

NBCUniversal is close to a three-year deal with Major League Baseball, valued at nearly $200 million annually. The agreement would bring MLB games back to NBC, including key Wild Card playoff games and a slate of Sunday morning games on Peacock. This would complete NBC's Sunday sports lineup alongside "Sunday Night Football" and "Sunday Night Basketball." The move highlights Peacock's strategy to use live sports as a way to boost subscribers.

NBCUniversal & Major League Baseball In Talks For 3-Year, $600 Million Deal

4) SEC To Go With 9 Game Conference Schedule

The SEC will switch to a nine-game conference schedule starting in 2026. This is a historic change for the league, which has played an eight-game schedule since 1992. The new format was approved by SEC presidents and chancellors to "deliver the most competitive football schedule in the nation," according to Commissioner Greg Sankey.

Under the new plan, the SEC will remain without divisions. Each team will have three permanent rivals and play the remaining six games on a rotating basis. This ensures every team will play every other SEC opponent at least once every two years. The league will also continue to require teams to schedule at least one high-quality non-conference opponent from a "Power 4" conference or Notre Dame.

The decision was partly influenced by the College Football Playoff's emphasis on strength of schedule. Other conferences, like the ACC, are not currently planning to expand their conference schedules, though their traditional rivalries with SEC teams could be affected.

SEC to go with 9-game conference schedule starting in 2026

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