The Big 12 Conference has been in discussions over the past six months, exploring potentially selling its naming rights to a title sponsor and Allstate has emerged as a potential candidate according to reports that surfaced today from ESPN’s Pete Thamel and the Action Network’s Brett McMurphy.
The talks include potentially changing the conference’s name, and McMurphy’s report states “The Big Allstate Conference” and “The Allstate 12 Conference” as two possibilities.
A financial company has also been in talks with the league, according to the report.
The naming rights deal is expected to be around $30-$50 million annually, which would be devided around its 16 member schools.
McMurphy’s report stated that the league is also considering a private equity investment, worth $800 million-$1 billion for 20 percent ownership of the conference.
CBS Sports identified CVC Capital Partners as the equity firm involved.
The Big 12’s current rights deal is fourth among the power conferences, worth $2.3 billion in average annual value.
This points to ways commissioner Brett Yormark is trying to bridge the gap in that department between the Big 12 and its competitors.