Cuban specifically referring to TV package expansion.
Dallas Mavericks owner Mark Cuban has warned the NFL that its popularity may decline over the next decade if they continue to be greedy over their expansion plans.
Cuban was specifically referring to the league’s intended expansion of their TV package, as he believes the decision to play games on other days other than Sunday and Monday could come back to haunt them.
The outspoken franchise owner insists that the NFL consistently dominates the TV ratings with the current format, but by adding more they will run the risk of flooding the fans with too much whilst simultaneously clashing with other tournaments that will eventually wear thin on viewers.
“I think the NFL is 10 years away from an implosion,” Cuban said Sunday evening, as reported by ESPN.
“I’m just telling you, pigs get fat, hogs get slaughtered. And they’re getting hoggy. Just watch. Pigs get fat, hogs get slaughtered. When you try to take it too far, people turn the other way.”
In February, the NFL announced a one-year deal with CBS and the NFL Network partnering to televise Thursday night games. CBS will air the games during the first eight weeks of the season, while the league’s cable network will exclusively show six later in the year.
The NFL Network will also have a Saturday doubleheader in Week 16, and Cuban believes that disrupting the usual schedule for fans could be a decision that comes back to haunt the league if they move towards putting games on almost three or four nights a week.
“They’re trying to take over every night of TV,” he added.
“Initially, it’ll be, ‘Yeah, they’re the biggest-rating thing that there is.’ OK, Thursday, that’s great, regardless of whether it impacts [the NBA] during that period when we cross over. Then if it gets Saturday, now you’re impacting colleges. Now it’s on four days a week…
“It’s all football. At some point, the people get sick of it.”
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