January 11, 2024

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Meanwhile: College football says goodbye to the man who changed coaching. … The NBA returns to Paris, with Victor Wembanyama boosting the league’s popularity . … There’s another NFL family feud unfolding. … More fallout from the Las Vegas Grand Prix hits businesses. … And Rory McIlroy shares his dream scenario for golf.

— David Rumsey [[link removed]]

Saban Leaving Alabama—and a Huge Financial Legacy [[link removed]]

Butch Dill-USA TODAY Sports

The man who helped reset coaching compensation is retiring.

Alabama football coach Nick Saban is stepping down [[link removed]] after 17 years at Alabama, six of which ended in national championships (He earned a seventh title with his split 2003 win at LSU). As impactful as his on-field success was—and at Alabama, he matched the national title legacy of illustrious predecessor Bear Bryant—Saban was arguably even more influential off the field.

Saban earned [[link removed]] an estimated $120 million over his entire Alabama tenure, including $11.4 million last year, standing as the highest-paid coach in college football for much of that time. In 2022, Saban received a new, eight-year contract worth nearly $94 million, vaulting past Georgia coach Kirby Smart to return [[link removed]] to the top of the coaches’ compensation list. Saban and Smart share the same agent, CAA’s Jimmy Sexton.

The Saban deal [[link removed]] arrived just a matter of weeks after Smart’s contract and had been set to carry through 2029. But Saban will now walk away from the final six years of the pact.

Numerous other coaches used Saban as a benchmark to help set their own contracts, including Clemson’s Dabo Swinney [[link removed]] and Ohio State’s Ryan Day [[link removed]], and Saban’s compensation also influenced the reported $125 million extension [[link removed]] Michigan has offered national champion coach Jim Harbaugh.

Saban was also the highest-paid public-sector employee in the state of Alabama, a situation mirrored by football coaches in several other states—but also the subject of some debate over the years. Saban himself struggled publicly at times with the largess, and in 2017, he said [[link removed]] he was “probably not” worth what he was paid. But there is no denying his impact, both on and off the field.

🗣️ LOUD AND CLEAR

Rory’s Dream: A World Tour 🌏

“My dream scenario is a world tour, with the proviso that corporate America has to remain a big part of it all. Saudi Arabia, too. … Revenues at the PGA Tour right now are about $2.3 billion. So how do we get that number up to four or six? … They need to think internationally and spread their wings a bit. I’ve been banging that drum for a while.”

—Rory McIlroy, on why he thinks golf should tap into markets like Australia, South Africa, Singapore, Hong Kong, and Japan, in an interview with Golf Digest [[link removed]].

Dispute Among Texans’ Ownership Marks Latest NFL Family Feud [[link removed]]

Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports

The NFL has struggled for decades with public intra-family feuds among its ownership ranks, and another potentially thorny situation is developing in Houston.

Robert Cary McNair Jr., son of Texans owner Janice McNair and the late Bob McNair, has submitted an application of permanent guardianship for his 87-year-old mother and her estate, asking the Harris County Probate Court to declare her incapacitated. The application is being opposed by both Janice McNair and Cal McNair, another of her sons who also serves as Texans chair and CEO.

In a request for court records to be sealed, Janice McNair called the matter a “family dispute.”

“It will create a needless and baseless media stir regarding the ownership and direction of the Texans,” she wrote, “thereby negatively affecting our employees, business partners, and the team.”

History of Strife

The Texans’ situation is far from the first issue among NFL team ownership families that has spilled into the public realm.

Miami Dolphins: After the 1990 death of former owner Joe Robbie, family infighting helped lead to a discounted sale of the team to pay a reported $47 million in estate taxes. Washington Commanders: After the 1997 death of former owner Jack Kent Cooke, the team was left to his foundation with instruction to sell it, forcing his son to mount an ultimately unsuccessful bid to buy the team on the open market. New Orleans Saints: Owner Gayle Benson spent nearly a decade in dispute with the children of her late husband, Tom Benson, whom she married later his life. But she ultimately gained control of the team and NBA’s New Orleans Pelicans, and a deadline to challenge the validity of his will lapsed [[link removed]] last year. Denver Broncos: The team was sold [[link removed]] in 2022 after the children of the late Pat Bowlen were unable to agree on an in-family succession plan.

The McNair dispute arrives as the Texans prepare to host the Cleveland Browns on Saturday in the wild card playoff round.

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Wemby Has NBA’s Popularity Skyrocketing in France [[link removed]]

Scott Wachter-USA TODAY Sports

The NBA is playing regular-season basketball in Paris on Thursday for the third time since 2020. Accor Arena, which can fit roughly 15,000 fans for basketball games, is hosting the Cleveland Cavaliers and Brooklyn Nets.

Paused in 2021 and 2022 due to the pandemic, the Paris series is back for the second year in a row and once more a staple of the NBA’s international growth plans. Next season, the league could be putting on its most-hyped matchup in Paris yet, as French sensation Victor Wembanyama and his San Antonio Spurs are reportedly being targeted as one team to make the trip abroad. The Spurs have agreed in principle to participate in a Paris game and are already making plans to do so, according to The Athletic [[link removed]].

Wembanyama, the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 NBA Draft, currently has not only the best-selling NBA jersey in France, but in all of Europe. (In the U.S. and Canada, the 20-year-old sits only behind long-tenured superstars Steph Curry and LeBron James.)

Despite the Spurs owning the NBA’s second-worst record almost halfway through Wembanyama’s rookie season, his presence in the league is drawing more French fans. NBA game viewership in France is up 26% year-over-year, while NBA League Pass subscriptions in the country have gone up 19%.

On Thursday, French fans will get their annual dose of live NBA action in Paris. But next year, should Wemby come to town, there could be pandemonium.

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🎙️ They Said What?

“I think it is going to be interesting to see if there’s some buyer’s remorse from these teams. I know they did it for money, but if you’re looking at [conference realignment] as a better way to the playoffs, I don’t know that this is the right move to make.”

—Matt Miller, ESPN NFL draft analyst, on the unintended consequences of so many schools changing conferences this past year. To hear more about all things football, check out the latest episode of Front Office Sports Today.

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

Las Vegas GP Unrest Shows Dark Underbelly of Sports Boom Town [[link removed]]

Formula 1 Las Vegas Grand Prix

It’s now been nearly two months since the Las Vegas Grand Prix. But local unrest is still palpable as the fallout from the much-debated Formula 1 event continues.

After months of traffic headaches [[link removed]], construction hassles [[link removed]], and a crashing [[link removed]] ticket market, the race itself defied [[link removed]] expectations and was ultimately a solid success [[link removed]] on TV. But a group of local small businesses wants to recoup millions of dollars alleged to have been lost because of the race.

A group of nine businesses asked the Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority for the establishment of a recovery fund to reimburse for lost revenues from the November race. Those businesses claim to have lost an estimated $23 million in revenue.

“Imagine not changing anything about your product, how you market, your customer service, guest quality, nothing, and yet you watch your business drop 50% or more in a matter of months,” said Lisa Mayo-DeRiso, a business development specialist who represents the nine affected businesses. Those entities claim to have seen car and pedestrian traffic plummet over a six-month period due to various race-related road closures and block entrances.

The LVCVA has not yet responded to the request. But the issue shows a darker side to what has been months of praise [[link removed]] for Las Vegas’s rise as a sports industry boom town. That conflict could resurface next month with the city’s hosting of Super Bowl LVIII.

“How can our Las Vegas leadership allow local businesses to struggle and suffer for a three- or four-day event? Who profited? A few hotels? It doesn’t make sense,” wrote [[link removed]] restaurant owner Gino Ferraro, who says he lost more than $2 million in revenue because of the F1 race, in a Las Vegas Review-Journal op-ed.

With construction for the 2024 Las Vegas Grand Prix set to begin in earnest this spring, the traffic and business issues are expected to quickly swell once again. In addition to the local business concerns, a prior class-action lawsuit [[link removed]] in Clark County, Nev., concerning fan access to the Las Vegas Grand Prix practice sessions was recently transferred to federal court.

Conversation Starters In 1995, Erik Spoelstra was the Miami Heat’s video coordinator. In 2024, he received an eight-year, $120 million extension [[link removed]] as head coach, the most committed coaching money in NBA history. Michigan-Washington was the most-watched college football National Championship Game since 2020. See how [[link removed]] it stacks up to previous editions. Stephen A. Smith says he contacted [[link removed]] ESPN leaders just to warn them about his podcast segment on Jason Whitlock on Wednesday—and he didn’t mince words. Editor’s Picks Aaron Rodgers’s Appearances on ‘The Pat McAfee Show’ ‘Done’ For Now [[link removed]]by A.J. Perez [[link removed]]Rodgers’ jab at Jimmy Kimmel, where he hinted at a link to Jeffrey Epstein, created strife within Disney. Just Undo It. Woods Confirms Split With Nike After Historic 27-year Run [[link removed]]by Eric Fisher [[link removed]]Iconic golfer part ways with Nike, ending one of the most impactful endorsement deals ever. How Michigan Turned a Sign-Stealing Scandal Into a Successful Marketing Ploy [[link removed]]by Amanda Christovich [[link removed]]The Wolverines’ official retailer launched a wildly popular merchandise line around the phrase “Michigan vs. Everyone.” Advertise [[link removed]] Awards [[link removed]] Learning [[link removed]] Video [[link removed]] Podcast [[link removed]] Sports Careers [[link removed]] Written by Eric Fisher [[link removed]], David Rumsey [[link removed]] Edited by Matthew Tabeek [[link removed]], Brian Krikorian [[link removed]]

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