DSG's "Herculean" Comeback

Those in Court Called DSG’s Reorganization Plan “A Twisted Journey”

November 14, 2024

Good morning! Diamond Sports Group’s comeback “nothing short of a miracle”

Diamond Sports Group Reorganization Plan Approved
SBJ’s Tom Friend writes, “Diamond Sports Group’s reorganization plan was formally approved in U.S bankruptcy court today, overcoming a 20-month odyssey that was referred to in the courtroom as a ‘twisted journey,’ ‘Herculean’ and a ‘nothing short of a miracle.’”

Judge Christopher Lopez overruled the only objection, “clearing the way for 13 NBA teams, eight NHL teams and six MLB teams to have their games broadcast by Diamond’s FanDuel Sports Networks and streamed on Amazon’s Prime Video as add-on subscription channels.”
^{Sports Business Journal}

Adidas Signing High School Basketball Phenom Kaleena Smith
SBJ’s Ben Portnoy reports: “Adidas is set to announce the signing of Kaleena Smith, a five-star point guard in the 2027 class, as its first women’s high school basketball partner. Smith -- a member of the USA Women's U17 National Team and the 2023-24 Girls Basketball MaxPreps National Freshman of the Year -- will represent Adidas during each of her games, while it will also sponsor her high school team at Ontario Christian High School (California).

“The signing is noteworthy as it's the first for new Adidas President of Women’s Basketball Candace Parker, who retired from the WNBA after a standout 16-year career that included two MVPs, three titles and seven All-Star nods.”
^{Sports Business Journal}

UFC Lands Its Biggest Tech Deal Yet With IBM
IBM has signed a global sponsorship deal with UFC, designed to leverage the exploding AI sector. One source familiar with the deal put it at low eight figures over a four-year term. The UFC's first tech sponsorship of any consequence puts the MMA circuit in elite company, considering IBM’s other sports sponsorships are with top-shelf sports properties, including long-standing deals with USTA/U.S. Open, the Masters, Wimbledon and a recent agreement with the Ferrari F1 team.
^{The Telegraph}

Phillies' Middleton Says Private Equity Firms Undervalued Team in Recent Capital Raise
SBJ’s Terry Lefton writes, “Penn’s sixth annual Wharton Sports Business Summit last week featured a number of top industry speakers. The highlight was a wide-ranging interview with Phillies managing partner John Middleton (perhaps not coincidentally, Phillies GM Sam Fuld is scheduled to complete a Wharton MBA in 2026, after which he will become the team's president of business operations). One of the best exchanges from Middleton was when he revealed that prior to a recent capital raise reported at $500 million, the team rejected entreaties from private equity.
^{Sports Business Journal}

Disney Exceeds Expectations in Q4 as ESPN's DTC Product Launch Remains on Track
Disney reported its fiscal fourth quarter and year-end earnings this morning, overall beating analyst expectations, according to SBJ. The company’s sports unit, which includes ESPN and Star India, saw operating income drop 6% to $896M. However, full-year domestic operating income is up 6%, helped by a 7% year-over-year jump in advertising revenue compared to Q4 ‘23.

ESPN is preparing to launch its direct-to-consumer product (Flagship) and is still on track for an early fall 2025 launch. The ESPN tile will land on Disney+ Dec. 4, which CEO Bob Iger described as “the beginning of an exciting new era for ESPN” during Thursday morning’s earnings call.
^{Sports Business Journal}

Dave Sims, 71, Getting Yankees’ Radio Job, Succeeding John Sterling
WFAN and the Yankees are set to hire Dave Sims, 71, to be their new radio play-by-player, succeeding the retired John Sterling, according to sources briefed on the agreement via The Athletic. Sterling, 86, stepped away from the broadcast booth earlier this year but returned to be the team’s lead play-by-player for its postseason run.
^{The Athletic}

Chargers to Open In-House Content Studio
The Chargers will open a 1,300-square-foot content studio inside of The Bolt, the team’s El Segundo headquarters, allowing the team, influencers, and others to create content aimed toward social media.

“We want to be able to facilitate more creation, even outside of our network for different brands, influencers, celebrities or athletes,” said Jason Lavine, SVP of brand creative and content for the Chargers.
^{Sports Business Journal}

NFL Scouting Combine Staying in Indianapolis Through 2026
ESPN’s Stephen Holder reports: “The NFL scouting combine will remain in Indianapolis for at least two more years under an agreement announced Thursday. Indianapolis tourism officials announced a deal with the NFL to host the league's flagship pre-draft event through 2026, superseding a previous agreement that ended with the 2025 combine.”
^ESPN

IU Takes Next Steps Toward Potentially Significant Memorial Stadium Renovations
Per a source familiar with the situation, IU President Pamela Whitten and Athletic Director Scott Dolson are currently engaged in mapping out funding and planning for a potentially significant renovation of the Memorial Stadium football complex.

Indianapolis Star’s Zach Osterman writes, “The infrastructure of the 64-year-old stadium can be improved. Press and luxury seating in its west-side tower could receive attention. Improvements could, in theory, even extend beyond the physical structure itself, to the areas immediately surrounding and adjacent to the stadium, like fan-service locations and football facilities.”
^{Indianapolis Star}

Tampa Bay Rays Will Play 2025 Home Schedule at Steinbrenner Field, Spring Training Stadium of the Yankees
According to Yahoo Sports, the Tampa Bay Rays will play their entire 2025 home schedule at Steinbrenner Field in Tampa, Florida, due to the damage Tropicana Field sustained after Hurricane Milton in October. The team reportedly chose Steinbrenner Field over the Philadelphia Phillies' spring training stadium in Clearwater after consulting with MLB.

Steinbrenner Field, which seats 11,000, is the spring training home of the New York Yankees and the team's Class-A affiliate, the Tampa Tarpons. The Tarpons will use other fields at the spring training complex for their home games.
^{Yahoo! Sports}

Angel City Announces Plans to Take Over Old Rams Training Facility With Multimillion-Dollar Renovation
Yahoo Sports’ Kari Anderson report: “Angel City FC will be getting an upgrade. The Los Angeles-based NWSL club announced Thursday that it will relocate to the former Los Angeles Rams training facility next year, after giving the center a multimillion custom renovation. The performance center, located on California Lutheran University's campus in Thousand Oaks, California, will have a full-size pitch and 50,000 square feet of indoor space. The size will make it the largest training facility dedicated solely to an NWSL team, according to the team.”
^{Yahoo! Sports}

Champions Classic Audience Up For ESPN
ESPN averaged 1.64 million viewers for the State Farm Champions Classic on Tuesday night, up 7% from 2023’s annual early-season men’s basketball doubleheader featuring Duke, Kansas, Michigan State and Kentucky. The audience, however, was down from 1.82 million for the 2022 doubleheader. The event, which started in 2011, was extended this week by ESPN Events and the schools for another four years (taking it through 2028).
^{Sports Business Journal}

Expanded SEC Is the Gift That Keeps Giving for ABC
FOS’ David Rumsey writes, “Through 11 weeks of the college football season, ABC has broadcast 12 of the top 15 most-watched games across all networks. That’s thanks to Disney’s new deal with the SEC, which expanded to 16 teams this year.

“Georgia has played in the two highest-rated games so far this season: 13.2 million viewers for a win over Texas (Oct. 19) and 12 million for a loss to Alabama (Sept. 28). Tennessee played in the third-most-watched game—a win over Alabama (Oct. 19). All three were on ABC.”
^{Front Office Sports}

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