Sport & Story Daily May 28, 2024

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May 28, 2024

Good morning! Following the Money in Sports

Power Players: Institutional Investors
SBJ highlights the key players in institutional investment broken down into the following categories: large-scale private equity, midsize and growth equity, early-stage and venture capital, and sovereign wealth funds. Profiles on all the firms you would expect, plus some you may not have heard of.
^{D1 Ticker via Sports Business Journal}

Connor McDavid Might Not Be Oilers’ Most Valuable Asset
Sportico’s Kurt Badenhausen writes, “The small-market Oilers are also thriving off the ice, with Rogers Place one of the most prosperous arenas in the NHL and the surrounding 25-acre mixed-use sports and entertainment development, ICE District, the second largest in North America, behind only Hudson Yards in New York.

“During the NHL playoffs, fans have congregated outside the arena for both home and away games with more than 11,000 fans split between the plaza and fan park, in addition to the 18,000-plus inside Rogers Place, which has been full for road game watch parties. OEG captures the revenue from all of the food and drink consumed inside and outside the arena.”
^Sportico

Nadal Exits French Open First Round After 20 Years, $23.7 Million
As Sportico’s Lev Akabas reports, “In 19 appearances at the tournament, Nadal has hoisted the Musketeers Cup a record 14 times en route to earning 21.8 million euros, or $23.7 million when converted at the current exchange rate. That accounts for roughly 18% of his career winnings of $134.7 million—second all-time behind Novak Djokovic’s $181.6 million.”
^Sportico

Bill Walton, NBA Star, ESPN Commentator and Grateful Dead Superfan, Dies at 71
“Bill then translated his infectious enthusiasm and love for the game to broadcasting, where he delivered insightful and colorful commentary which entertained generations of basketball fans,” NBA Commissioner Adam Silver said.
^Variety

Does Netflix Really Need the NFL?
As John Ourand writes, “Now we’re seeing Netflix (WWE, the NFL Christmas games), Google/YouTube (Sunday Ticket), and Apple (MLS, some MLB) making significant investments into sports rights, too. Leagues are overjoyed at the idea of adding new, deep-pocketed bidders to the mix. After all, more bidders generally equal higher prices. But of course, big questions remain, which is why I decided to phone up my colleague Julia Alexander, one of the foremost experts on the streaming landscape, to dig into all of this and more.”
^Puck 

Network Number Crunching: Best Games Deserve the Biggest Audiences
As Ed Desser and John Kosner of SBJ write in their opinion piece, “Led by the NFL, sports ultimately forged such a strong connection with viewers that it dominated all other programming. In 2023, 96 of the top 100 TV programs were sports. This performance also has been aided by Nielsen’s inclusion of out-of-home viewing, which disproportionately favors live games. Exempting sports, network average prime-time adult 18-49 ratings are now down to under a half a ratings point each.

“We are advocates for best practices, constantly searching for incremental sports media value. With streamers circling and reduced cable penetration, it’s time to rethink the playbook for network TV sports…”
^{Sports Business Journal}

NFL International Expansion: League Considering Game in Middle East in Addition to Australia, Per Report
Per the New York Times via CBS Sports, the NFL is considering a game in the Middle East—which would likely be Abu Dhabi. The NFL has never played a preseason game in the Middle East during the "American Bowl" era, so this would be the league's first venture in the Middle East. 

The league is also considering games in Japan and Italy, and this is in addition to Peter O'Reilly (the NFL's head of international affairs) revealing at the NFL Spring Meetings that Australia is under consideration to host a game.
^{CBS Sports}

Senior Associate AD for Compliance Rob Heuer is Stepping Down, Effective June 30
“Working in athletics is the only professional lifestyle I’ve known for the last 18 years. However, to be the husband and father I want to be, I need to step away from this lifestyle. … Throughout the past year, I have realized that even in the best of circumstances I cannot simultaneously do this job well and care for my family well. Accordingly, I’m choosing my wife and daughters.”
^{D1 Ticker via Twitter}

Jesse Marsch’s Canada Squad for Friendlies Against the Netherlands and France Announced
The Athletic’s Joshua Kloke reports: “Jesse Marsch has revealed his first roster as men’s national team coach for upcoming friendlies against the Netherlands on June 6 and France on June 9.

“And less than two weeks after being officially hired as Canada’s new men’s national team coach, Marsch has put his stamp on how Canada could look moving forward.”
^{The Athletic}

Title IX College Sports Equity Conscience
As athletic departments contend with how the House settlement will impact Title IX, Husch Blackwell explains in an AthleticDirectorU article, that, per the Office of Civil Rights, “nothing in Title IX requires the cutting or reduction of teams in order to demonstrate compliance with Title IX, and the elimination of teams is a disfavored practice. Because the elimination of teams diminishes the opportunities for students who are interested in participating in athletics instead of enhancing opportunities from discrimination, it is contrary to the spirit of Title IX.”
^{D1 Ticker via Athletic Director U}

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