Clemson, Florida State will vote to settle ACC lawsuit, discuss new revenue model: report

It appears Clemson and Florida State could have a new deal with the ACC on the table, putting an end to any lingering fears they would exit the conference over revenue concerns.

James Parks | Mar 3, 2025

USA Today Sports | Imagn

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We could see a resolution between Clemson and Florida State on one side and the ACC on the other, as the three parties appear set to reach a settlement of their respective lawsuits.

Clemson and Florida State will vote on an agreement on Tuesday that will result in the settlement of lawsuits between the schools and the ACC, according to an ESPN report.

The settlement is expected to include a new revenue-distribution agreement that would keep the ACC’s current membership in place indefinitely.

If so, that would bring a conclusion to the dispute between the schools and the conference, and should end the speculation that Clemson and Florida State would entertain leaving the league and joining another in football and other sports.

Members of the ACC Board of Directors will hold a conference on Tuesday to review the settlement terms, while Clemson and Florida State will have their own talks the same day.

All three of the boards must agree for the settlement to become official, and it is believed all the respective parties will agree to do so.

Part of the deal involves the ACC agreeing to a new revenue model that distributes more of the conference’s income from media deals to top earning schools after it was apparent that Clemson and Florida State were among several schools concerned about the league’s earning power.

That concern moved into focus over the last two years after college football underwent a historic conference realignment that saw the SEC and Big Ten emerge as the sport’s two superpowers, both on the field and when it comes to media revenue.

Going forward, the ACC will fund the plan with a split in the conference’s media revenue, with 40 percent of the money handed out equally among legacy members, and the other 60 percent going to teams with greater media exposure, based on a five-year rolling average of TV ratings.

The plan could find higher-earning teams making $15 million more per season, while other schools may see as much as a $7 million loss every year, according to the report.

But that’s a deal the ACC’s other members are apparently willing to take in order to keep the conference together going forward and prevent any schools from departing.

Talk around Clemson and Florida State potentially leaving the ACC has been brewing since both schools brought lawsuits against the conference.

Florida State and Clemson sued the ACC in an effort to challenge the enormous exit fee the conference charges to members who want to leave before 2036, when the league’s current grant of rights agreement is set to expire.

They were among the so-called “Magnificent Seven” schools that rebelled against the ACC two offseasons ago amid other conference realignments, asking the league for a bigger share of the pie. North Carolina was a third.

Now it appears they could be on the verge of getting it.

(ESPN)

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