November 16, 2023

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“Rooted In Oakland” — the A’s slogan unveiled in 2017 as part of an effort to get a new stadium there — sounds more like a sports version of New Coke as the club gained formal approval of its move to Las Vegas. It’s been a rugged half-decade for Oakland, with the Warriors and Raiders also leaving. But despite plenty of mistakes on all fronts, what cannot be stripped away is more than a half-century of sports excellence, with the A’s winning four titles, the Warriors another four, and the Raiders two more while there. The city also gave rise to many icons such as Rickey Henderson and Dave Stewart, who both grew up and starred professionally in Oakland.

Do you think the A’s will work in Last Vegas? Respond to this email, and we might share your comments.

— Eric Fisher [[link removed]]

MLB Owners Unanimously Approve A’s Relocation To Las Vegas [[link removed]]

Stan Szeto-USA TODAY Sports

In the end, there was no dissension for the Oakland A’s relocating to Las Vegas, at least among MLB owners.

Team owners unanimously approved the club relocation early Thursday during league meetings in Arlington, solidifying just the second franchise shift in MLB since 1971. The A’s are due to begin play in a new $1.5 billion Las Vegas stadium in 2028, though questions remain [[link removed]] on where the team will play for the 2025-27 seasons.

The approved relocation bid also sets up a lame-duck season in 2024 at the Oakland Coliseum that could be even uglier than the team’s 2023 campaign, during which the A’s posted both MLB’s worst record at 50-112 and lowest attendance at 832,352.

“I know this is a terrible day for fans in Oakland. I understand that,” said MLB commissioner Rob Manfred. “I think it’s beyond debate that the status quo in Oakland was untenable. … I am absolutely convinced there was not a viable path forward.”

The A’s will also become the first MLB team to call four different cities home, with prior stops in Philadelphia and Kansas City.

Additionally, the club is the fourth major sports franchise to leave Oakland following the Golden State Warriors’ relocation to San Francisco’s Chase Center, the Oakland Raiders’ move to Las Vegas, and the NHL’s California Golden Seals’ move to Cleveland in 1976 to become the Cleveland Barons before folding two years later.

The unanimous vote arrived despite fans protests [[link removed]] and last-minute lobbying [[link removed]] from Oakland political leaders, as well as outcry [[link removed]] from MLB Players Association leaders.

The relocation also comes after nearly two decades of active pursuit by the current A’s ownership group to strike a stadium deal in the Bay Area.

“We gave every effort, did everything we could to try to find solution there, and it was only the last couple years we started to turn our attention to another market,” A’s owner John Fisher said.

Not The End Of The Road?

Oakland officials refuse to see this as the end of baseball in that town and vowed to maintain efforts to develop a long-elusive stadium deal there.

“We all know there is a long way to go before shovels in the ground and that there are a number of unresolved issues surrounding this move,” said Oakland mayor Sheng Thao. “I have also made it clear to the commissioner that the A’s branding and name should stay in Oakland, and we will continue to work to pursue expansion opportunities.”

Sinclair: DSG Will Likely Shut Down After 2024 MLB Season [[link removed]]

Diamond Sports Group

The long-term outlook for Diamond Sports Group is increasingly dim.

It’s already facing the prospects of holding no major pro team rights after the 2024 MLB season, and during a U.S. bankruptcy court hearing Wednesday, lawyers for DSG parent Sinclair Inc. said that chances of a company liquidation next year are growing.

“To Sinclair folks who originally acquired Diamond, they’re kind of bummed. They’re bummed that this business that they put in a billion-and-a-half [dollars] of equity value in, is now going to be shut down,” said Sinclar lawyer David Seligman. “There’s going to be people losing their jobs … Diamond’s business is going to go away.”

DSG lawyer Andrew Parlen said a company liquidation may happen in 2024 if a new and profitable operating path can’t be found.

But there remains plenty of anger and finger-pointing. DSG, the parent of Bally Sports, received [[link removed]] court approval of its cooperation agreement [[link removed]], which will see it surrender its NBA team rights at the end of the 2023-24 season. It might also have to release its rights to the NHL and MLB.

MLB, however, objected to that agreement, as did Sinclair, and the court tentatively plans to hear those objections early next month.

“There is a deal with the NBA. And that’s great,” said MLB lawyer James Bromley. “We’ve been hearing that one might be coming for quite a while and there is not one yet with the NHL. We understand it’s on the way, but we have not seen it. And there is no deal with Major League Baseball. And there are a number of issues that need to be addressed.”

Among those issues is how many MLB teams DSG will carry in 2024 — with the Cleveland Indians and Texas Rangers the subjects of the latest rumors [[link removed]] of potential DSG cuts — and what the resulting impacts [[link removed]] on team payrolls will be.

SPONSORED BY NFLPA

Bring Your Best Pitch to the Sports Industry

Get your startup in front of some of the sharpest minds in the sports industry at the 8th annual NFLPA Pitch Day [[link removed]]! Applications are open and the NFLPA is looking for early-stage companies specifically within Consumer Products & Goods and Health Tech, Human Performance & Wellness industries.

Pitch Day is a platform for innovative entrepreneurs to showcase their business and connect with NFL players [[link removed]], sports executives and investors.

Selected pitch companies will take the stage during Super Bowl week in Las Vegas for the opportunity to secure funding, athlete-marketing services, strategic consultations, and potential access to NFLPA’s group licensing rights.

Apply now [[link removed]] and learn more about Pitch Day!

Aston Martin F1 Team Surpasses $1B Valuation With Arctos Investment [[link removed]]

Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

As Formula 1 prepares for this weekend’s Las Vegas Grand Prix, the circuit’s teams continue to see increased investment from new financial backers.

Aston Martin F1 has a new valuation of more than $1 billion after an undisclosed investment from Arctos Sports Partners, according [[link removed]] to the Financial Times. It represents the first outside investment for Aston Martin, which until now has been 100% owned by Canadian billionaire Lawrence Stroll.

Saudi Aramco, Aston Martin’s biggest sponsor, has the rights to buy 10% of the team in the future if it chooses to do so.

The Aston Martin news comes not long after Alpine F1 received a $210 million cash infusion [[link removed]] from Otro Capital and RedBird Capital Partners that included Hollywood stars Ryan Reynolds, Rob McElhenney, and Michael B. Jordan, as well as superstar athletes Patrick Mahomes, Travis Kelce, Rory McIlroy, and Anthony Joshua. The investment for a 24% team stake, initially announced in June, valued Alpine at about $900 million.

Meanwhile, last month it was revealed that Rob Walton — the billionaire Walmart heir who is also one of the owners of the Denver Broncos — had been an investor [[link removed]] in McLaren F1 since 2020, when the team sold a minority stake to U.S. investment group MSP Sports Capital at a valuation of nearly $600 million.

Earlier this year, Forbes estimated [[link removed]] Ferrari to be the most valuable F1 team at $3.9 billion, followed by Mercedes ($3.8 billion) and Red Bull ($2.6 billion).

Editor’s note: RedBird IMI is an investor in Front Office Sports.

Conversation Starters ESPN quietly said goodbye [[link removed]] to its “SportsNation” handle this week, officially rebranding all social media accounts as ESPN Bet. Would you want to watch NBA In-Season Tournament games on Netflix? The streaming giant is reportedly interested in acquiring [[link removed]] the rights to the new competition. Check out [[link removed]] footage from the Las Vegas Grand Prix’s opening ceremony.

SPONSORED BY STREAMLAYER

Sportsbooks Focus on User Engagement

StreamLayer [[link removed]], a B2B tech platform that recently executed one of the largest interactive streaming events on record, is now helping sportsbooks increase user engagement and revenue.

StreamLayer’s patented technology will encourage sportsbook users to keep their apps open while watching live games by offering a fun communal betting experience built around real-time bet prompts, next-gen stats, and innovative watch party features. The company will be debuting its sportsbook functionality later this year, in partnership with one of the fastest growing operators in the world.

“Our technology has already helped media companies increase app sessions by nearly 2X,” said John Ganschow, StreamLayer CEO. “We’re confident we can deliver similar results to the sportsbook industry, resulting in significantly increased handle.”

For partnership inquiries, please contact COO Andrew Fleming [mailto:[email protected]].

Editor's Picks Royals May Consider Third Stadium Site After Missing Deadline [[link removed]]by Doug Greenberg [[link removed]]The other two options are in KC’s East Village and Clay County. Washington State Supreme Court Puts ‘Pac-2’ Control On Hold [[link removed]]by Amanda Christovich [[link removed]]The 'Pac-2' won't be able to control the board just yet. Financial Woes Could Force Arizona To Cut Sports Programs [[link removed]]by Eric Fisher [[link removed]]Financially struggling university to consider dropping some varsity teams. Three Chances to Win

Front Office Sports is partnering with Splash Sports to bring you Weeks 11-13 Pick X Contest [[link removed]]!

Attempt to select the winner for 13 games per slate, and get one point for each correct selection. Select the most correct answers and be one of three winners to be awarded a cash prize! Deadline to sign up is November 20, 2023.

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