• by Mark Walsh  @markfwal, June 4, 2013

Verizon Wireless on Tuesday announced extending its mobile partnership with the National Football League through a new multiyear agreement that will add Sunday afternoon games in the 2014 season.

Verizon replaced Sprint Nextel as the NFL’s official wireless service provider in March 2010 in a four-year pact valued at $720 million. The latest deal will cost the nation’s largest carrier $1 billion over the course of the four-year contract, starting with a $210 million payment in the first year, according to a SportsBusinessDaily report.

Neither Verizon or the NFL responded immediately to media inquiries about the contract’s reported valuation.

Under the new deal, Verizon will continue to offer exclusive access on phones to the NFL Network’s "Thursday Night Football" coverage, NBC’s "Sunday Night Football" and ESPN’s "Monday Night Football" broadcasts, as well as the league’s popular RedZone channel.

In addition, it will allow Verizon subscribers to stream all other regular-season Sunday afternoon games airing on CBS and Fox in teams’ home markets, along with all post-season games, including the Super Bowl. For the 2013 season, the NFL and Verizon will launch an updated version of the NFL Mobile app, which includes enhancements to its offering of game highlights, on-demand video, news and stats.

The app, created by Verizon Wireless IT, currently has a 2.5 out of five-star rating in the iTunes App Store and a 3.5 star rating in the Google PlayStore for Android devices. The new agreement covers only streaming on smartphones, with the NFL’s broadcast partners retaining their rights to streaming games on PC and tablets, per SportsBusinessDaily.