The Varsity

In this special live recording from In the Arena, NCAA president Charlie Baker joins John to discuss the state and future of college athletics—which Baker describes as uncertain rather than chaotic, amid a swirl of court rulings, N.I.L., and revenue sharing. He also weighs in on the Protect College Sports Act, NCAA Tournament expansion, whether SEC and Big Ten self-governance concerns him, and more.

Wolfe Research’s Peter Supino joins John to discuss what comes next for Netflix’s sports strategy in the wake of Bela Bajaria’s abrupt exit. Peter explains why Netflix should partner with rivals like Peacock and pivot from one-off sports events to full-season slates—and lays out his case for why the streamer should buy NBCUniversal outright. They also dig into the sports-media fallout from the Skydance merger.

Axios’s Sara Fischer returns to the pod to discuss Bela Bajaria’s exit from Netflix and whether her successor, former Disney and Fox executive Peter Rice, will lean more heavily into live sports. They also get into ESPN’s Super Bowl debut, sports rights in a Skydance world, the dramas playing out across the NFL’s broadcast booths, and more.

ESPN’s Jay Bilas joins John for a temperature check on the college sports landscape. Jay argues that the talent has never been better, and scrutinizes the NCAA for blaming the disorder it created while refusing to fix it—and hoping Congress will instead. He shares the reforms he’d like to see, his critiques of the Protect College Sports Act, and why he believes the NCAA neither needs nor deserves an antitrust exemption.

ESPN’s Greg Wyshynski joins John to preview the NHL season and assess the league’s business outlook. They get into the new 84-game schedule, league expansion, the NHL’s international ambitions, Bettman succession plans, and more.