August 15, 2024

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U.S. Soccer will reportedly hire former Chelsea, Paris Saint-Germain, and Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino to lead its men’s team. He’ll almost certainly command a hefty salary—how could that impact equal-pay efforts between the men’s and women’s teams?

— Eric Fisher [[link removed]], David Rumsey [[link removed]], and Colin Salao [[link removed]]

USMNT’s Expensive Pochettino Hire Could Impact U.S. Women [[link removed]]

Jon Durr-USA TODAY Sports

With less than 22 months until the 2026 FIFA World Cup kicks off in North America, the U.S. men’s national soccer team appears to have finally landed its big fish.

Former Chelsea manager Mauricio Pochettino (above) is in line [[link removed]] to become the next U.S. head coach, with an official announcement expected soon. The move comes after a failed effort [[link removed]] to hire former Liverpool manager Jürgen Klopp. The U.S. fired Gregg Berhalter after his team couldn’t advance out of the group stage at the Copa América.

Pochettino was let go from Chelsea this spring after one season with the club, which finished sixth in the Premier League and didn’t qualify for this season of UEFA Champions League. His prior managerial experience includes two Ligue 1 titles overseeing Paris Saint-Germain, and taking Tottenham to a Champions League final. Along the way, he’s coached superstars Lionel Messi, Kylian Mbappé, and Harry Kane.

Money Game

Berhalter’s most recently known annual compensation was $2.29 million in 2022, well below the eight-figure salaries top European managers make. “I know it’s a really competitive market out there salary-wise,” U.S. Soccer sporting director Matt Crocker said after firing Berhalter. “And we have to be competitive to get the level of coach that I believe can take the program forward.”

Pochettino is still owed money by Chelsea, according to ESPN [[link removed]], which is holding up an official signing with the U.S. It’s unclear exactly how much the manager is owed and what his salary last season was. Last month, The Telegraph [[link removed]] reported Chelsea would be owed roughly $6.4 million if Pochettino accepted a job with another Big Six Premier League club, but nothing if he joined a national team. British tabloid The Sun [[link removed]] reported Pochettino received a nearly $13 million buyout after leaving Chelsea.

USWNT Impact

Pochettino will be the second Blues manager hired by the U.S. in the last 12 months. Former Chelsea women’s coach Emma Hayes just led the U.S. women’s national team to its first Olympic gold medal since 2012.

Last fall, Hayes received a record contract for a women’s soccer manager from the U.S., including a $1.6 million annual salary that put her on equal footing with Berhalter before performance bonuses. A huge salary for Pochettino would complicate U.S. Soccer’s equal-pay efforts. But manager contracts are often not cut and dry, with clubs and national federations sometimes paying for only part of the total compensation, while sponsors pitch in for the rest.

Trail Blazers Join a Growing List of NBA Teams to Part Ways With RSNs [[link removed]]

Troy Wayrynen-USA TODAY Sports

Another NBA team is parting ways with the regional sports network model for its local media, but the impacts of this shift could be particularly far-reaching.

The Trail Blazers announced they are leaving Seattle-based Root Sports, with that departure coming a year before the end of the current contract. The team joins the Suns, Jazz, and Pelicans that have already made moves toward various combinations of over-the-air television and streaming to show their games locally. The Trail Blazers are reportedly considering similar structures with multiple suitors—not surprising given the team is highly popular in Portland, and does not share the city with teams from the NFL, NHL, or MLB.

“An exciting announcement on the future television home of Blazers basketball will be made soon,” the team said in a statement.

What About Root Sports?

The Trail Blazers’ split, while said to be amicable, could certainly represent the beginning of the end for Root Sports, owned by MLB’s Mariners. The other team previously shown on the RSN, the NHL’s Kraken, already announced a split in April to show their games on local over-the-air television and on Amazon.

With the Mariners now the sole major team aired on Root Sports, striking lucrative distribution deals will inevitably become much more difficult. Comcast, a major cable carrier in the Seattle area, previously shifted [[link removed]] Root Sports to a premium-level tier, part of a broader strategy of how it is repositioning many RSNs on its systems.

MLB commissioner Rob Manfred, meanwhile, continues to pursue [[link removed]] a large-scale reformation of that sport’s local media in a more league-centric model.

It’s additionally worth noting that the other three RSNs that formerly operated under the Root Sports name have each gone through major overhauls of some sort in the last year. SportsNet Pittsburgh is now owned and operated by Fenway Sports Group, parent of the NHL’s Penguins and the New England Sports Network, among other assets. AT&T SportNet Southwest is now the Space City Home Network and co-owned by the NBA’s Rockets and MLB’s Astros. And AT&T SportsNet Rocky Mountain shut down [[link removed]] at the end of 2023.

Over at Diamond Sports Group …

Since the Trail Blazers’ situation involves Root Sports, the bankrupt Diamond Sports Group is not a direct party. But the Bally Sports parent is still aiming to complete reworked rights agreements with the NBA and NHL that were said [[link removed]] last month to be close.

DSG still has rights to 14 NBA teams. But as the number of franchises opting to exit the RSN model altogether moves closer to critical mass, it bears watching whether any of the teams under the DSG umbrella makes a similar exit—something that could greatly alter the delicate league negotiations.

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LOUD AND CLEAR After Further Review

Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports

“It’s not a full offering for sports, it’s really not.”

—CBS Sports president and CEO David Berson, describing the programming limitations of Venu Sports, the soon-debuting [[link removed]] streaming service combining [[link removed]] content from ESPN, Fox Sports, and Warner Bros. Discovery. The holes in the Venu Sports lineup—particularly the large gaps in NFL and college sports coverage—have been well known [[link removed]] since the effort was first announced in February. But Berson’s sentiment represents one of the most direct public comments from a major media entity that is not part of Venu Sports.

Conversely, Berson remains enthused about CBS Sports’ prospects of further NFL ratings growth [[link removed]], and he reiterated that “we love our strategy” that focuses its own coverage on broadcast TV and the Paramount+ service. The network, meanwhile, will also profit from Netflix’s new deal [[link removed]] to show Christmas Day NFL games. CBS Sports will produce the games for the streamer, and, in addition to receiving a fee for those services, the network will gain local broadcast rights for the pair of games and promotional inventory within the contests. “We’re benefiting financially and strategically in doing this, but it works really well for both parties,” Berson said.

STATUS REPORT One Up, Three Down

Bruce Kluckhohn-USA TODAY Sports

Browns ⬇ Following pushback [[link removed]] from two Cuyahoga County members Sunday, there’s more political animosity against the team’s proposed $2.4 billion domed stadium. Edward Orcutt, mayor of Brook Park, a suburb about 15 miles from Cleveland where the Browns are eyeing to construct the stadium, told Cleveland 19 News [[link removed]] that he’s putting the team’s proposal on the back burner. “We are fully aware that there are things swirling around about the Cleveland Browns and that seems to be the main topic. As mayor of Brook Park, I have tabled that subject and we are fully focusing on tornado cleanup,” Orcutt said.

Angels ⬇ A state auditor is launching an investigation looking into the team’s failed stadium sale and its compliance with its stadium lease, according to the Los Angeles Times [[link removed]]. The audit request alleges that the Angels—whose lease goes until 2029 and could be extended up to 2038—may be keeping revenue owed to the city. In 2022, the franchise’s stadium sale fell through [[link removed]] after the FBI found that then mayor Harry Sidhu gave confidential information to the Angels that benefited the franchise in the deal.

White Sox ⬇ Despite halting a historic losing streak last week, the hits keep coming for the franchise in what’s shaping up to be one of the worst seasons in MLB history. The White Sox, 29–93, are cutting season-ticket prices by 10% for next season, SVP Brooks Boyer said [[link removed]] Wednesday.

Pro League Network ⬆ The company carrying novel sports leagues like mini-golf circuit Putt Tour and slapping contest SlapFight Championship closed a $4.2 million seed round, the company announced Thursday. The investment round was led by VC firm KB Partners, joining previous investors including Eberg Capital and former NBA star Kevin Garnett.

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Consideration for this award is inclusive of:

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Submissions are open through Oct. 6 at 11:59 p.m. ET. Learn more [[link removed]] about the award or submit your organization today.

Conversation Starters The International Olympic Committee announced 9.5 million tickets were sold for the Paris Olympics, with the U.S. as the third-most-represented country. See the top five [[link removed]]. Northwestern football will play at a temporary stadium alongside Lake Michigan as it waits for Ryan Field to reopen in 2026. Check it out [[link removed]] from a bird’s-eye view. A trailer for The Money Game, a docuseries produced by Shaquille O’Neal on how NIL (name, image, and likeness) impacted LSU athletics, released its first trailer. Watch it here [[link removed]]. Editors’ Picks Saudis Make North American Soccer Inroads With Concacaf Deal [[link removed]]by Margaret Fleming [[link removed]]It’s PIF’s first North American soccer investment. Brewers Owner Sued by Billionaire KKR Heir Neighbor for Stealing Sand [[link removed]]by Margaret Fleming [[link removed]]Mark Attanasio is accused of stealing sand from a Malibu beach. MLBPA Sues Pirates, Sheetz Over Alleged Unauthorized Player NIL Use [[link removed]]by A.J. Perez [[link removed]]The suit concerns how often player names, images, and likenesses were used. Advertise [[link removed]] Awards [[link removed]] Learning [[link removed]] Video [[link removed]] Podcast [[link removed]] Sports Careers [[link removed]] Written by David Rumsey [[link removed]], Eric Fisher [[link removed]], Colin Salao [[link removed]] Edited by Matthew Tabeek [[link removed]], Or Moyal [[link removed]], Catherine Chen [[link removed]]

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