Turner Sports Signs Multi-Year Deal With Alliance of American Football
Charlie Ebersol’s new football league launches a week after Super Bowl LIII
Debbie Emery | January 31, 2019 @ 7:26 AM
Last Updated: January 31, 2019 @ 7:52 AM
NFL fans won’t have to wait for long after Super Bowl LIII to get a new football fix.
The newly-formed Alliance of American Football launches its first season on Feb. 9, and Turner Sports announced on Thursday that they’ve signed a multi-year, cross-platform partnership with the league that will include live event coverage extending across a combination of Turner Sports platforms TNT and the B/R Live streaming service.
TNT will exclusively televise one Alliance regular season game and one playoff game each season throughout the length of the agreement, with additional regular season games available weekly via B/R Live.
“Our focus has always been, and will always be, to create an Alliance of players, fans and the game. Joining forces with world-class partners like Turner Sports allows us to keep our mission moving forward and reach thousands of sports fans across their Turner family of platforms,” Alliance’s co-founder and CEO Charlie Ebersol said in a statement. “Turner’s focus on providing high-quality live event programming and their commitment to digital with B/R Live, fits seamlessly into our distribution model, and ultimately offers fans the opportunity to watch more football.”
Lenny Daniels, president of Turner Sports, added: “We’re looking forward to this exciting partnership with The Alliance — including working closely with its leadership team of Charlie Ebersol, Bill Polian, Hines Ward and Troy Polamalu — and share the enthusiasm and forward-thinking vision being applied to this newly-formed league.
“This is a true partnership and The Alliance will have our full support in the distribution of its live game coverage and content across the Turner Sports portfolio.”
TNT will kick off it’s Alliance coverage on with Salt Lake Stallions vs. Birmingham Iron on Saturday, Feb. 16, leading into NBA All-Star Saturday Night – and will conclude with one Alliance playoff matchup in April.
Before then, B/R Live will launch the inaugural season of The Alliance with a special program available Saturday, Feb. 9, introducing fans to the league including some of the top moments from the preseason. B/R Live’s game coverage will begin Saturday, Feb. 23, with the Arizona Hotshots vs. Salt Lake at 3 p.m. ET.
The Alliance features eight teams with 52-player rosters playing a 10-week regular season schedule beginning Feb. 9 on CBS, followed by two playoff rounds and culminating with the championship game at Sam Boyd Stadium in Las Vegas on April 27.
15 Famous Los Angeles Rams Fans, From Ty Burrell to Bryan Cranston (Photos)
The home of Hollywood has a team back in the Super Bowl. On Feb. 3, the Los Angeles Rams will face the New England Patriots in Atlanta for the Big Game: Super Bowl LIII. Stars from film, TV and music will be cheering on the Rams as an LA team returns to the Super Bowl for the first time in 39 years. Some of them have long cheered for the Rams before the team left for St. Louis in 1994, while there are also some that have become passionate fans since the team's return in 2016.
If you're backing the Rams, or cheering against the Patriots, here is a look at some of the Hollywood stars who will be cheering right along with you. No VIP pass required.
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Ty Burrell
Despite being born and raised in Oregon, the "Modern Family" star has long cheered for the Rams franchise. Burrell famously attended the Rams first game once the team returned to L.A. in 2016, just to leave at half time to rush to the Emmys.
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Magic Johnson
The Lakers legend is a fan of all things Los Angeles, and that includes the Rams. When the Rams came over from St. Louis in 2016, Johnson became the first person to put his deposit down for season tickets, a fact the Rams confirmed on Twitter.
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Terry Crews
Before making his way to Hollywood, the "Brooklyn 9-9" star began his career as a pro football player with the Rams back in 1991. Since he moved to acting, Crews has been seen cheering for the Rams from the stands.
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Bryan Cranston
The "Breaking Bad" actor once loved watching the Rams growing up, but as he told NFL Network's "Good Morning Football" show in January 2018, he lost hope when the team moved to St. Louis. "It's like being dumped for another city!" Cranston said.
But Cranston is back on the bandwagon. "I was a little stand off-ish at first, but they won me back," he added.
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Kendrick Lamar
The Pulitzer-winning rapper not only performed at the Rams' home opener in 2018, but he was also seen running routes on the Rams practice field in 2016.
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Danny Trejo
The "Machete" and "Spy Kids" star is such a big Rams fan, his Trejo's Coffee & Donuts in Hollywood has started to sell L.A.-Rams themed donuts. But the fandom doesn't stop there. Trejo went on the Rich Eisen Show last October, recounting his childhood sneaking into the Coliseum to watch the Rams in the '50s.
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Holly Robinson Peete
Hallmark's "Meet the Peetes" actress showed her Rams fandom when she shared a video on Twitter celebrating the win over the New Orleans Saints in the NFC championship game. Oh, did we mention her brother-in-law is Rams running back coach Skip Peete?
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YG
Rapper YG was seen watching the Rams game against the Cowboys Jan. 12 alongside Cowboys fan Post Malone. "WHO’S HOUSE? RAMS HOUSE!!!!" the Compton native tweeted January 2019.
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Adam Carolla
The comedian and early podcast adopter is a Los Angeles native and an outspoken supporter of the team."THE RAMS ARE GOING TO THE SUPERBOWL!" Carolla wrote in an Instagram caption January 2019.
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Taran Killam
The Former "SNL" cast member has been following the Rams' path to the Super Bowl closely on social media. "I think we ain’t done yet. #WhoseHouse @RamsNFL HOUSE" the actor/comedian tweeted after the Rams beat the Saints in the NFC championship game January 2019. He's no Johnny-come lately either: In December 2016, Killam even appeared on "Late Night With Seth Myers" wearing a light-up Rams sweater.
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Nikki Sixx
The Motley Crue bassist can often be found wearing a Rams hat on his social media channels, but he's also an avid watcher of the team as well. "Some great football on this weekend," Sixx wrote on an Instagram caption January 2019. "I got my practice amp fired up, a metronome and the TV on. #losangeles @rams #GoRams. #BassPlayer"
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Flea
The Red Hot Chili Peppers performed at the Rams halftime show during the first game of the Rams' 2016 season. If you have any doubts Flea just played for the money, he tweeted in September 2018, "I am a los Angeles rams man through and through..." Case closed.
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Vince Staples
The Compton native worked with Nike in 2017 on the #WhoYouWith campaign. "I’m with the Los Angeles Rams. #WhoYouwith Nike Football #teamnike" the rapper's official Facebook page posted in September 2017.
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Robert Patrick
You may have seen him try and defeat the Terminator as the shape-shifting T-1000, but the long-time actor has left that life behind to focus on bigger things: the Rams defeating the Patriots in the Super Bowl. "Bring on the @Patriots!!!! #win" he tweeted January 2018.
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Tom Morello
The former Rage Against the Machine guitarist is now performing for the Atlas Underground, but one thing hasn't changed: He's a die-hard Rams fan. In January 2016, Morello posted a picture of himself on Instagram when he was only kid holding a Rams helmet. "Been a Rams fan my whole life," he wrote in the caption.
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If you want to see what stars will be rooting against the Rams, check out this gallery of A-list Patriots fans.
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Kendrick Lamar and Machete are among the stars that will be cheering for the Los Angeles Rams as they play this Sunday at Super Bowl 53
The home of Hollywood has a team back in the Super Bowl. On Feb. 3, the Los Angeles Rams will face the New England Patriots in Atlanta for the Big Game: Super Bowl LIII. Stars from film, TV and music will be cheering on the Rams as an LA team returns to the Super Bowl for the first time in 39 years. Some of them have long cheered for the Rams before the team left for St. Louis in 1994, while there are also some that have become passionate fans since the team's return in 2016.
If you're backing the Rams, or cheering against the Patriots, here is a look at some of the Hollywood stars who will be cheering right along with you. No VIP pass required.
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