The Carolina Hurricanes’ long-awaited renovations to PNC Arena represent a $1.1 billion transformation of the hockey venue and its surrounding footprint in downtown Raleigh, North Carolina.

With a new 20-year lease signed, $300 million will be spent by local authorities to upgrade the Hurricanes’ home ice, which also houses the N.C. State men’s basketball team. Team owner Tom Dundon will fund $800 million of redevelopment on the 80 acres surrounding PNC Arena during the life of the lease.

The first phase of projects surrounding the arena will be completed within five years and include retail, dining, and office spaces, as well as residential units, a hotel, and an indoor music venue that can fit up to 5,000 people. There are also plans for a sports betting lounge. 

Specific renovations to the arena itself will be determined soon.

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Sports-centric “mini-cities” continue to be popular for professional teams and their local governments.

In Cleveland, the Browns are exploring a vast redevelopment project along Lake Erie, while Colorado Rapids owner Stan Kroenke wants to make their stadium site a year-round destination for MLS fans.

The NHL’s Pittsburgh Penguins have plans for $30 million in renovations to PPG Paints Arena, and the Philadelphia Flyers are close to completing $400 million worth of renovations to Wells Fargo Center. That project has caused controversy between the team’s owners and the NBA’s 76ers, who are arena tenants but exploring a downtown venue of their own.

It’s no secret that Diamond Sports Group is facing external and existential challenges, from ongoing churn in traditional pay TV to battles with creditors, leagues, and teams.

Now, add a major internal battle to the list.

The bankrupt Bally Sports parent has sued its own corporate parent, Sinclair Inc., alleging that more than $1.5 billion was illegally siphoned as DSG’s business deteriorated. The lawsuit, filed last month, has recently been unsealed as part of DSG’s ongoing bankruptcy case.

DSG claims that Sinclair used the company as a source of personal enrichment for several years as the entire regional sports network business fractured and DSG ultimately headed for bankruptcy earlier this year.

“Throughout this entire period of precipitous decline, Sinclair unrelentingly continued to carry out its plan to ‘milk’ Diamond for Sinclair’s own benefit and to extract whatever value it could salvage before Diamond’s inevitable bankruptcy,” DSG said in its filing.

“All of this was conceived of and implemented while Diamond’s business was, as Sinclair officers knew or should have known, careening toward bankruptcy, and it continued after Diamond was unquestionably insolvent,” the suit continues.

DSG remains in a time crunch to determine its future. A bankruptcy reorganization plan is due by Sept. 30 — and to complete that, the company must decide which of its 27 total NBA and NHL team media rights it will keep. The decision will require meaningful progress on distribution renewal negotiations with Comcast, DirecTV, and Spectrum.

On Thursday, DSG received its requested judicial mediators to help resolve these issues.

Sinclair VP Chris King said the company “firmly believes that it has meritorious defenses to the allegations in the Diamond lawsuit, and we plan to vigorously defend against them.”

Mirroring fast-growing investor enthusiasm for the WNBA and NWSL, a new group is looking to acquire women’s soccer clubs around the world.

The newly formed Mercury 13 will represent one of the first multi-club soccer ownership entities existing entirely outside the men’s game. Mercury 13 will begin with $100 million raised from European family investor offices and former pro soccer players.

The company — named for a group of female pilots who weren’t allowed to join NASA’s astronaut program — will be led by Victoire Cogevina Reynal, a longtime advocate for gender equity in soccer and a current VP at media company OneFootball. The group is nearing several potential deals in Europe, Bloomberg reported. 

Mercury 13 will pursue controlling stakes in teams outside of the U.S., where it sees franchise prices escalating too quickly. Recently, the Chicago Red Stars were sold in a deal worth up to $35.5 million, and the Chicago Sky recently took in new investors at a $85 million valuation. 

Similar Strategies

The model for Mercury 13 mirrors several investment entities that have invested broadly in men’s soccer, including 777 Partners and Eagle Football Holdings. 

Though not as common elsewhere in U.S. sports, the structure offers a means to achieve cost savings and larger revenue opportunities spanning multiple clubs and pave the way for the seamless sharing of players. However, some critics have alleged that the model curtails competition on and off the field.

Australia narrowly missed out on playing in the FIFA Women’s World Cup final on home turf, but after breaking all sorts of records on and off the pitch, the Matildas want to see continued investment in soccer Down Under.

Wednesday’s England-Australia semifinal match turned out to be the most-watched TV program on record in Australia, averaging more than 7 million viewers and at one point a nearly 90% share — meaning nine out of every 10 televisions turned on in the country were watching the game. That’s higher than the ratings share in Kansas City for the Chiefs’ win in Super Bowl LVII.

The co-host nation was certainly behind its team throughout the World Cup, and Australia captain Sam Kerr hopes that translates into further money spent on growing soccer in the country. “We need funding everywhere,” Kerr said, pointing to player development and grassroots efforts.

“Hopefully, this tournament kind of changes that because that’s the legacy you leave — not what you do on the pitch,” she added. “The legacy is what you do off the pitch.”

Quite The Finale

On Sunday, England battles Spain at 6 a.m. ET on Fox and Telemundo in the U.S., concluding what has already been the highest-attended Women’s World Cup ever — and its total attendance is approaching 2 million. 

Australia — which drew packed stadiums for every match across the country — will get one more time to shine, playing Sweden in the third-place match on Saturday.