November 7, 2023

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It’s been a historic year for women’s sports from March Madness to the World Cup and as 2023 winds down we still have some major moments ahead. This week, Billie Jean King, Annika Sörenstam, and Lyn St. James — titans of their respective sports — are joining forces for what they’re calling Parity Week, a series of coordinated events across tennis, golf, and motorsports dedicated to empowering women. We speak with two of those icons in today’s newsletter.

— David Rumsey [[link removed]]

Billie Jean King Is Still Hitting Equal Pay Milestones [[link removed]]

Maya Carter-USA TODAY NETWORK

Fifty years ago, Billie Jean King risked her career to advance her sport.

“In ‘72 at the media conference [following her third U.S. Open title], I said we’re not coming back unless we get equal prize money,” King recounted [[link removed]] on the Front Office Sports Today podcast. “I hadn’t planned it. I just did it.”

That decision — with support from other female players, men like former Open director Bill Talbert, and a corporate sponsor in pharmaceutical giant Bristol-Myers — led the U.S. Open to grant equal prize money to men and women in 1973. The other tennis Grand Slams would eventually follow, albeit several decades later.

On Tuesday, the Billie Jean King Cup Finals start in Spain with a record total purse of $9.6 million, which is on par with the competition earnings at its men’s equivalent, the Davis Cup. Champions at the 12-team BJK Cup Finals will pocket $2.4 million.

The development comes at a time when we’re increasingly seeing the potential of King’s dreams from the 1970s being realized, across more sports than tennis.

U.S. Soccer announced new collective bargaining agreements [[link removed]] in 2022 with identical pay structures for men and women players. In August, more than 92,000 fans attended a Nebraska volleyball match [[link removed]] at the university’s Memorial Stadium, setting a world record in the process.

The ANNIKA, hosted by Annika Sörenstam — the winningest and highest-earning golfer in LPGA history — recently became the first LPGA event named after a former player and revealed a $3.25 million purse. It’s the league’s largest prize money total outside of the majors.

“There’s a lot on stake this year because it’s the final event before the Tour Championships,” Sörenstam told Front Office Sports. “There’s a lot up for grabs: money list, Player of the Year, Rookie of the Year, you name it.”

Fifty years after her landmark U.S. Open moment, King continues to fight for opportunities in women’s sports, particularly through personal investments. She’s launching the Professional Women’s Hockey League this January with Los Angeles Dodgers owner Mark Walter, and has stakes in the NWSL’s Angel City FC as well as League One Volleyball.

“The money’s where the media rights are,” said King, referencing the NCAA’s extension of March Madness branding to women’s college basketball and subsequent growth in viewership, an evolution she’s found inspiring. “This is just the beginning.”

PODCAST

🎙️ They Said What?

“When I was about 12 years old, I had an epiphany, and I promised myself I would fight for equality the rest of my life.”

— Tennis legend Billie Jean King on how she started her journey as an activist for equality. To hear more about King’s impact, check out the latest episode of FOS Today.

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

DSG Plans To Retain NBA, NHL Rights This Season In Reorganization Effort [[link removed]]

Diamond Sports Group

There will be at least a momentary pause in the rights chaos surrounding Diamond Sports Group.

The bankrupt company said Monday that it intends to retain its remaining NBA and NHL team rights through the 2023-24 season as it continues its reorganization.

After the Utah Jazz, Phoenix Suns, and Arizona Coyotes pursued [[link removed]] their own local broadcast strategies [[link removed]] and numerous other teams developed contingency plans [[link removed]] amid DSG’s ongoing issues [[link removed]], the company told a U.S. bankruptcy court in Texas on Monday that it intends to keep its remaining 15 NBA teams and 11 NHL teams through the current season.

The stance is part of a newly filed cooperation agreement DSG has filed with the court, one intended to be an important interim step in completing a Chapter 11 reorganization. The agreement follows court-ordered mediation [[link removed]] and involves several of DSG’s key lenders.

But there is a big condition: All the NBA team local rights in question will revert back to the league and those teams following the 2023-24 season. This subsequently opens up the possibility for an unprecedented co-selling of national and local rights in that league’s next set of domestic media rights. A similar deal is in development with the NHL.

The agreement remains subject to court approval.

An additional and notable condition in the agreement involves DSG selling its minority equity stakes in the New York Yankees’ YES Network and Chicago Cubs’ Marquee Network, with proceeds going to unsecured creditors.

Baseball Clues

The latest filing also provides new clues regarding DSG’s plans for the 2024 MLB season. After league commissioner Rob Manfred recently renewed [[link removed]] his call for clarity on the matter, DSG said it has “determined which MLB team agreements the debtors may retain, subject to further discussions with the applicable teams, and recently have identified these teams to MLB.”

Those teams have not yet been publicly disclosed, but during a Monday status conference in the bankruptcy proceedings, DSG said it intends to keep 10 of the 12 teams in question and is working on solidifying plans with the other two.

After taking over the production and distribution of the San Diego Padres [[link removed]]’ and Arizona Diamondbacks [[link removed]]’ broadcasts in 2023, Manfred said the league could assume a similar role for as many as 16 teams next year. But if this DSG plan comes to fruition, nothing close to that will be required.

SPONSORED BY GAINBRIDGE

New Women’s Sports Activation Launching

Here’s a challenge: name another single week where 180 women athletes are competing for total prize money of nearly $13 million!

That’s right – welcome to Parity Week [[link removed]] by Gainbridge, a celebration of women’s sports and those that helped pave the way. Three events are happening this week connected to Parity Week:

The Billie Jean King Cup by Gainbridge – the World Cup of Women’s Tennis The ANNIKA driven by Gainbridge at Pelican – the penultimate event of the LPGA Tour season Women with Drive III, driven by Mobil 1 – a motorsports conference designed to advance opportunities for women in motorsports

Gainbridge® [[link removed]] is proud to honor legends Billie Jean King, Annika Sörenstam and Lyn St. James for helping fight to bridge the pay and opportunity gap for women’s sports.

Learn more [[link removed]] about Parity Week and follow @gainbridgesport [[link removed]] on social media.

NASCAR Hits Offseason With International Expansion Under Consideration [[link removed]]

Syndication: Arizona Republic

NASCAR has never held a points-paying Cup Series race outside the United States — but that might be changing soon.

Ryan Blaney won the 2023 Cup Series championship on Sunday — his first title and Team Penske’s second consecutive — taking NASCAR into its three-month offseason with plenty to sort out away from the track.

The 2024 schedule is already set, but sentiment is growing that NASCAR’s top circuit will race internationally in 2025. Over the weekend at Phoenix Raceway, NASCAR chief operating officer Steve O’Donnell confirmed there was interest in adding a race in Montreal in 2024, reiterating the desire to capitalize on the Canadian market.

And as Formula 1, which is racing in 20 countries this season, continues its expansion in the United States, NASCAR will even look to take its top product to a new continent. “Absolutely,” O’Donnell said during a conversation with Front Office Sports when asked about the idea. “We’re exploring a number of different options.”

NASCAR has international series in Canada, Mexico, and Europe, and held full-points races in its second-tier Xfinity Series in Canada and Mexico, but believes any of its events could thrive internationally. “We want to bring that experience outside of North America as well,” O’Donnell said.

Media Deals Nearly Done

By the time NASCAR gets back on the track in February, it could very well have completed its next set of media rights deals. The CW has acquired rights [[link removed]] to the Xfinity Series, but the Cup and truck series remain up for grabs.

Contracts with Fox Sports and NBC Sports expire after the 2024 season, but both partners are widely expected to renew in some capacity. NASCAR president Steve Phelps confirmed [[link removed]] that a streaming partner will likely be involved in the next package of deals, which have generated higher-than-anticipated interest.

Sports Agency Consolidation Wave Continues With Major Acquisition [[link removed]]

Nathan Ray Seebeck-USA TODAY Sports

The push for greater scale in the athlete representation business is intensifying with Excel Sports Management’s acquisition of REP 1 Football — a move that expands the agency’s presence among NFL players.

Before the long-rumored deal, Excel had been active in promotion and sponsorships with NFL players such as Los Angeles Chargers quarterback Justin Herbert and Jacksonville Jaguars quarterback Trevor Lawrence, as well as former stars such as Peyton and Eli Manning and Joe Montana, but hadn’t been negotiating on-field player contracts.

Now, with Rep 1 Football in the fold, it will gain the latter’s entire roster of NFL clients, including Detroit Lions quarterback Jared Goff and Los Angeles Rams receiver Cooper Kupp.

“REP 1 Football has a reputation as an agency for achieving unparalleled results for draft selections and negotiating record-breaking contracts, which fills out the work we do in football across our agency and firmly establishes Excel as a major player in the most popular sport in America,” said Jeff Schwartz, Excel president and founder.

Financial terms were not disclosed. REP 1 Sports co-founder and CEO Ryan Tollner and president of football Chase Callahan will become co-heads of football at Excel.

Ongoing Trend

The Excel pact extends a general trend among many agencies pursuing greater scale and breadth.

In September, French billionaire Francois-Henri Pinault acquired [[link removed]] CAA, which itself purchased [[link removed]] ICM Partners, last year in a $7 billion deal with aspirations to enlarge its business. Nearly eight months after overseeing WME’s purchase of basketball powerhouse BDA Sports Management, IMG and WME parent Endeavor could [[link removed]] go private amid lagging stock prices.

Wasserman, another heavyweight in the sports agency space, completed its acquisition of U.K.-based CSM Sport & Entertainment, while in June, Octagon bought Prosport International’s rugby division to expand its presence in that sport.

Conversation Starters Craig Counsell earned [[link removed]] $22 million in 16 seasons as an MLB player — but his new $40 million deal to be the Cubs’ manager will pay him more than that in just three. Phil Knight spent nearly a decade in the military before launching Nike. Follow [[link removed]] his veteran’s journey. Josh Dobbs has played [[link removed]] for five teams in two seasons and was on the Vikings for five days when he subbed in for an injured Jaren Hall, and led Minnesota’s game-winning drive in the final minute to beat the Falcons. Afterward, he decided to properly introduce [[link removed]] himself.

SPONSORED BY GAINBRIDGE

$13 Million: The Parity Week Payout

This year, Gainbridge® [[link removed]] is making a difference in women’s sports with Parity Week [[link removed]] by elevating exposure of three major events to fans and prize money for the athletes.

The ANNIKA driven by Gainbridge at Pelican is the highest purse on the LPGA Tour outside of the majors and the season-ending event. Meanwhile, the Billie Jean King Cup by Gainbridge Finals holds a purse that is equivalent to the men’s World Cup of Tennis, the Davis Cup. Finally, Gainbridge® is sponsoring a livestream of the motorsports conference to help it reach a broader audience.

Gainbridge® is proud to work with our sister company Parity, a brand sponsorship platform committed to closing the gender income and opportunity gap in professional sports.

Over 25 Parity athletes will be attending events during Parity Week. Learn more [[link removed]].

Editor's Picks Netflix Charging $2M To Advertise With Live Sports Event [[link removed]]by Doug Greenberg [[link removed]]It will cover ads on the course for the commercial-free event. Welfare Scandal Hasn’t Shaken Support for Brett Favre at Southern Miss [[link removed]]by A.J. Perez [[link removed]]Welfare scandal fallout hasn't halted Favre's appeal at his alma mater. One Of World’s Largest Pickleball Facilities to Open in Arizona [[link removed]]by Doug Greenberg [[link removed]]PURE Pickleball will be the largest pickleball facility in Arizona. Who Is The Highest-Paid Women’s College Basketball Coach? [[link removed]]by Greg Lee [[link removed]] and Amanda Christovich [[link removed]]LSU rewarded Kim Mulkey after winning a national title after her second year leading the program. Question Of The Day

When was the last time you purchased sporting equipment?

Within the last 3 months [[link removed]] Within the last 3-6 months [[link removed]] Within the last 6-12 months [[link removed]] More than 12 months ago [[link removed]]

Monday’s Answer

23% of respondent companies use employee recognition software.

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