MKRob Sports

The Atlantic Coast Conference and ESPN have agreed to a 12-year deal that would give the network exclusive rights to conference football and men’s basketball games.

The deal begins in the 2011-12 season and would give ESPN syndication rights that would allow Raycom Sports to carry games and maintain its long-running broadcasting relationship with the league.

“Some of ESPN’s most memorable moments have featured the ACC and we’re proud to extend our long-term relationship with this great conference and Raycom,” ESPN president George Bodenheimer said in a statement Thursday.

ESPN would broadcast ACC regular-season football games each Saturday as well as the conference championship game. In men’s basketball, the network would carry all games on one of its channels or through ESPN3.com, ESPN Mobile TV and other multimedia entities.

The deal would also include the entire women’s basketball tournament and coverage of non-revenue sports such as by baseball, softball, lacrosse, and men’s and women’s soccer.

“We are excited to be continuing our partnership with ESPN and Raycom Sports,” ACC commissioner John Swofford said in a joint statement. “This agreement allows our schools to reach significantly new financial heights while also showcasing more ACC content and coverage than ever before across traditional and new media platforms.”