March 29, 2023

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Philadelphia 76ers and New Jersey Devils owner Josh Harris and his group is the “only” serious contender currently in the mix to purchase the Washington Commanders. Front Office Sports reporter A.J. Perez reveals [[link removed]] the remaining x-factor is whether Jeff Bezos will enter the process.

Leagues NFL Owners Reportedly Want to Open Door to Private Equity [[link removed]]

Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

The NFL could join every other major U.S. league in allowing institutional investors.

Some owners are interested [[link removed]] in seeing the NFL join MLB, the NHL, NBA, MLS, NWSL, and others in allowing private equity firms and sovereign wealth funds to purchase stakes in their teams, according to Bloomberg.

With team values rising, the number of potential buyers and minority owners has dwindled. No major U.S. league allows private firms to own a majority share in a team, but many have found it to be a useful path to liquidate part of a team’s value.

Because firms view teams as investment assets, leagues typically allow individual funds to own pieces of more than one team.

While ownership rules aren’t on the agenda at this week’s NFL owners meeting, some executives are using the event as a chance to build support for the idea, which could be implemented next year.

Fund Founders want Piece of Chargers

Clearlake Capital co-founders Behdad Eghbali and Jose Feliciano are interested [[link removed]] in personally buying the 24% stake in the Los Angeles Chargers owned by Dea Spanos Berberian, per Bloomberg.

Clearlake was the main financial backer of Todd Boehly’s purchase of Premier League club Chelsea, and the two were interested in the Denver Broncos, which ultimately sold to Rob Walton for $4.7 billion.

Media CBS’ Masters Coverage Won’t Take Sides in PGA vs. LIV Feud [[link removed]]

Rusty Jarrett/Augusta National/Handout Photo via USA TODAY Sports

CBS Sports vows it will not play favorites [[link removed]] in covering players from the competing PGA Tour and LIV Golf series during its coverage of next week’s 2023 Masters Tournament.

“The Masters Tournament and Augusta National is bigger than any player that has come before, any player that’s around now, and any player that will come in the years ahead,” said CBS’ Trevor Immelman, the 2008 champion who will call his first Masters as lead analyst with Jim Nantz.

“What we are focused on is giving the tournament justice and crowning a great champion, putting a green jacket on a great champion that Sunday afternoon.”

Sean McManus, chairman of CBS Sports, promised that while the network won’t treat LIV players differently, it also won’t “cover up or hide” anything.

This will be the first time PGA and LIV Golf rivals tee it up at Augusta National Golf Club with the coveted Green Jacket at stake.

Led by three-time winner Phil Mickelson (2010, 2006,2004), LIV boasts a number of former Masters champions, including:

Dustin Johnson (2020) Patrick Reed (2018) Sergio Garcia (2017) Bubba Watson (2014, 2012)

The powerful Augusta National always wants to keep the focus on the players and the beauty of the grounds.

As CBS director Sellers Shy said: “We’re not cheerleaders here. We just want to cover the golf tournament.”

SPONSORED BY NEXTLEAGUE

The Upside to the Sports Betting Market

The sports betting market [[link removed]] had about $3.8 billion in revenue in 2021 and will grow to almost $6 billion by the end of 2023. Needless to say, there is massive upside for the industry.

In the same way fantasy sports changed the sports business by engaging fans in player performance outside of their favorite teams, U.S. sports betting will engage a new generation of fans, generating billions in betting revenue, and millions in additional ad and sponsorship revenue.

Live and in-game betting opportunities for fans are creating new levels of engagement. Micro-betting should play a huge role in the adoption of sports betting as real-time content delivery and the Artificial Intelligence capabilities required to quickly deliver smart betting opportunities to fans matures.

For more on the impact of Sports Betting on the sports technology industry, download Next League [[link removed]]’s report exclusively on this topic here [[link removed]].

Markets Lululemon’s Revenue Rises 30% to $2.8B During Quarter [[link removed]]

Shutterstock

Athleisure giant Lululemon reported strong global sales for the fourth quarter and 2022 fiscal year.

The company announced that revenue rose 30% to $2.8 billion for the quarter ending Jan. 29, 2023.

Income from operations decreased 47% to $314.4 million, but adjusted income from operations increased 33% to $785.3 million.

During the quarter, Lululemon opened 32 company-owned stores for a total of 655.

“In the fourth quarter and full year 2022, we delivered strong results across the business driven by our innovative products, powerful guest experiences, and strategic market expansion,” said Calvin McDonald, chief executive of the Vancouver-based company, in a statement.

McDonald added: “Our continued high level of performance is a reflection of the hard work and agility of our incredible teams and the deep connections they create with our guests and communities around the world.”

During fiscal 2022, Lululemon’s net revenue rose 30% to $8.1 billion. Revenue rose 29% in North America and 35% annually, while adjusted income from operations also rose 30% to $1.8 billion.

One caveat: Bloomberg notes that “nagging inventory issues” continue to eat into company margins.

Looking ahead, Lululemon said it anticipates Q1 net revenue to grow 18% to a range of $1.89 billion and $1.93 billion — an outlook that exceeds analyst expectations.

The retailer’s shares rose 7% in after-hours trading Tuesday.

World West Ham United ‘Open’ to London Stadium Purchase [[link removed]]

West Ham United

West Ham United is reportedly [[link removed]] “open” to the outright purchase of London Stadium, which continues to be a burden to London taxpayers.

The Hammers have called the stadium — initially constructed as the centerpiece for the 2012 Summer Olympics — home since 2016, when the club signed a 99-year lease with the city at $3.1 million per year, which later increased to $4.4 million per year.

However, in 2018 Lyn Garner, CEO of the stadium’s partial owner, the London Legacy Development Corporation, said that West Ham’s rent doesn’t nearly cover the costs of staging matches there and sets the organization up for “losses for the next 97 years.”

Taxpayers largely covered a $397 million renovation of the grounds to convert it into a multipurpose stadium, with West Ham contributing $18.5 million.

Since then, LLDC has been working on nailing down a naming rights deal for the stadium that Garner is “very confident” will happen this year.

LLDC has accounted for $246 million to cover future losses related to the stadium — but that figure is being challenged by auditors and could significantly increase if the city continues to own the stadium.

Czech businessman Daniel Kretinsky, who owns a 27% stake in West Ham and has been rumored to be trying for a full takeover, has said he would be open to purchasing London Stadium, according to The Times [[link removed]].

Conversation Starters Rising 25 is back — and it’s time to nominate [[link removed]] an up-and-coming young professional changing the game in the business of sports! A new study finds that across Power 5 college sports, coaching salaries [[link removed]] for women’s sports aren’t growing at a rate comparable to their male counterparts. Talk about upscale: Amenities at Mike Trout’s new 18-hole golf course [[link removed]] — created by Tiger Woods’ TGR Design — will include an expansive putting course, high-end practice facilities, a performance center, a state-of-the-art clubhouse, lodging, and even a wedding chapel. A day after Caitlin Clark dropped the first 40-point [[link removed]] triple-double in men’s or women’s NCAA Tournament history — sending Iowa to the Final Four — every session to her new Youth Skills Camp sold out within four hours.

SPONSORED BY ISOS CAPITAL MANAGEMENT

How to Connect With the Modern Sports Consumer

After a tumultuous few years, the sports world [[link removed]] is back on top.

Stadium attendance is back on the rise. Live sports programming is dominating the ratings on both linear television and streaming services, and fans are consuming sports media all day long across multiple platforms and devices.

These developments and the seemingly unstoppable growth ahead offer a multitude of opportunities [[link removed]] to connect with the sports fan community in the digital environment, but capitalizing on these chances can be challenging.

Read more [[link removed]] to learn how your organization can better understand and connect with the modern sports consumer.

Front Office Sports Today They Said What?

Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

“It’s South Carolina — the reigning national champions, and the best defensive program with the best defensive player in the country in Aliyah Boston — versus the best offensive player in Iowa with Caitlin Clark … The get-in ticket price is already more expensive for the women’s tournament than it is for the men. I think that, in and of itself, shows just how big a deal this game is going to be.”

— FOS reporter Amanda Christovich on the hype surrounding the Final Four matchup between South Carolina and Iowa in the women’s NCAA tournament on the latest episode of Front Office Sports Today.

Listen and subscribe on Apple [[link removed]], Google [[link removed]], and Spotify [[link removed]].

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Tuesday’s Answer

59% of respondents prefer to own / drive a vehicle manufactured in the U.S.

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