Wondery has secured the rights to the podcast New heights with Jason and Travis Kelce.
The Amazon-owned podcast studio has signed a distribution and exclusive advertising sales deal with the podcast of the brothers-turned-NFL stars. The deal is said to be worth nine figures and “very competitive,” according to a person familiar with the matter.
As part of the multi-year agreement, Wondery receives worldwide distribution rights for all audio and video episodes of the podcast. Back catalogue and the right to create international audio adaptations of the podcast.
The brothers launched the podcast in 2022 on Wave Sports + Entertainment with behind-the-scenes looks at their football careers and their own lives, as well as insights into the season and pop culture. While Jason, then a center for the National Football League’s Philadelphia Eagles, and Travis, a tight end for the Kansas City Chiefs, were already a crowd-pleaser, the podcast reached a new level in the cultural zeitgeist when Travis began dating Taylor Swift and discussed life with the pop star on the podcast.
Typically considered the best sports podcast on Apple and Spotify during football season, New Heights recently won Ambies, Webbys, and Shorty awards, as well as Podcast of the Year at iHeartMedia’s 2024 iHeartPodcast Awards.
“We’ve been watching the podcast grow, actually since it launched, and I’ve built a relationship with Travis and Jason and have been getting to know them for some time,” Wondery CEO Jen Sargent said in an interview with The Hollywood Reporter. “Sports is a really exciting category for podcast listeners. It is a strategic priority for Wondery and Amazon. So there were many reasons to consider joining forces here on the New heights Podcasts.”
As part of the deal New heights will continue to be available on all podcast services and YouTube. Wondery will also offer ad-free listening to Wondery+ subscribers and have the rights to host live streams and develop, manufacture, license and distribute merchandise based on New heightsWave Sports + Entertainment will continue to provide production services for New Heights.
This is the latest media move by the Kelce brothers. In May, Jason announced his retirement from the NFL and has since worked as an analyst at ESPN. In addition to his ongoing football career, Travis has also been hired as a host for Amazon Prime’s new spin-off, A.Are you smarter than a star?and is currently in talks to star in a new Lionsgate comedy.
“We are thrilled to be working with Wondery on the next phase of New heights” said Travis and Jason Kelce. “We love this show and the fan base that has grown with us over the past two seasons. Wondery understands the shared vision and will provide a wealth of experience and resources to take us to new heights! We will create some groundbreaking moments together through this partnership. We look forward to getting started on Season 3 – see you soon, 92%ers!”
Wondery is also looking into possible live events, according to Sargent, and is considering translating the podcast into different languages and potentially creating localized content or live events internationally depending on the market. The company also has a right of first refusal on new shows from the Kelce brothers.
This deal follows Wondery’s distribution and advertising sales deal with Dax Shepard’s Podcast Armchair expert. That deal, announced in July, was valued at $80 million. That and SiriusXM’s $125 million deal with Alex Cooper and the $100 million deal with Smartless, a former Wondery title, are standout examples in this new era of podcasting, which has seen a slower pace of big-budget deals compared to the spending sprees of the past.
Sargent said the deals with New heights And Armchair Expert are part of Wondery’s strategy to “work with shows from well-known personalities from the entertainment and cultural world that have an established audience.” Wondery then comes into play to expand the reach of the podcast and the brand, with the additional boost from Amazon. The podcast studio is also the home of the podcasts, We crashed And Dr. Deaththat have been adapted for the screen, as well as popular titles such as Economic wars, cheater And How I built this.
“We’re a podcast studio, we’re an ad network, we create our own content, but we’re part of Amazon, and we’re thinking about how we can take a 360-degree approach to grow audiences, grow intellectual property, expand from audio to video, merch, live events and more, depending on the partner,” Sargent said.
