November 17, 2021

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More than a dozen countries have hosted NBA preseason games in the past, but the league has never played a game in the United Arab Emirates. That will change come October 2022 when two preseason contests tip off in Abu Dhabi. The teams have yet to be announced.

Staples Center Will Be Renamed Crypto.com Arena in 20-Year, $700M Deal

Crypto.com

After 22 years as the Staples Center, one of the most iconic venues in sports is getting a new name [[link removed]] that’s undeniably a sign of the times.

As part of a 20-year deal worth a reported $700 million, Crypto.com will take over [[link removed]] naming rights to the venue starting Dec. 25, when the Los Angeles Lakers host the Brooklyn Nets for the NBA’s annual Christmas showcase.

Staples Center is also home to the league’s Clippers, the WNBA’s Sparks, and the NHL’s Kings. The Clippers are moving to the recently announced Intuit Dome in the city’s Inglewood neighborhood in 2024. Intuit reportedly paid north of $500 million for naming rights to that venue over 23 years.

AEG — which owns the Kings and MLS’ L.A. Galaxy in addition to producing events like Coachella — owns and operates Staples Center. The company quietly bought back naming rights from the office supplies retailer in 2019.

Crypto.com has been incredibly active in the sports world this year.

It announced a five-year, $100 million global partnership with Formula 1 in June.It signed a 10-year, $175 million branding deal with UFC in July.It secured a multiyear partnership with Serie A in August.

The Singapore-based crypto exchange isn’t alone in its pursuits. A competitor, FTX, agreed to a 19-year, $135 million naming rights deal for the Miami Heat’s arena in March.

Fenway Sports Reportedly In Talks to Buy Pittsburgh Penguins

Pool Photo-USA TODAY Sports/Design: Alex Brooks

Fenway Sports Group is reportedly [[link removed]] in talks to buy the NHL’s Pittsburgh Penguins.

FSG is the holding company that owns the Boston Red Sox.

Former Penguins star Mario Lemieux and investor Ron Burkle purchased the team out of bankruptcy in 1999 for $107 million, and Forbes valued the franchise at $650 million last December.

The five-time Stanley Cup winners would be another addition to Fenway’s impressive roster.

FSG bought the Red Sox in 2002 for $700 million — the team was last valued [[link removed]] at $3.47 billion.In 2007, it bought 50% [[link removed]] of NASCAR’s Roush Racing team, which rebranded to RFK Racing on Tuesday after Brad Keselowski became a minority owner and driver for the team.The group purchased [[link removed]] Liverpool FC in 2010 for $440 million. The club was valued at $4.1 billion in April 2021.

RedBird Capital Partners entered an agreement with FSG earlier this year to invest $750 million at a valuation of roughly $7.35 billion, coinciding with Lebron James’ investment [[link removed]] in the group.

The Wall Street Journal reported that the Penguins deal could be finalized later this week. Terms of a potential transaction have not been disclosed, but multiple reports [[link removed]] suggest Lemieux would remain a minority owner.

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Epic Games CEO Calls for Single, All-Platform App Store

Fortnite/Design: Alex Brooks

Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney has already turned his displeasure with Apple into a prolonged legal battle. On Tuesday, he laid out a radically different vision for how people should be able to buy apps and games.

“What the world really needs now is a single store that works with all platforms,” Sweeney said [[link removed]]. Epic is coordinating with various developers to build a system that would enable users “to buy software in one place, knowing that they’d have it on all devices and all platforms.”

“Right now, software ownership is fragmented between the iOS App Store, the Android Google Play marketplace, different stores on Xbox, PlayStation, and Nintendo Switch, and then Microsoft Store and the Mac App Store,” he said.

Epic has worked [[link removed]] to avoid Google’s and Apple’s developer fees for apps and in-app purchases, allowing users to download the game directly from its website or through Samsung’s Galaxy Store.Google became concerned that developers would follow Epic’s lead and launched a task force to address the issue.The tech giant estimated [[link removed]] that developers leaving its Play Store could cost it $6 billion by 2022.

Epic was valued at $28.7 billion after a $1 billion funding round in April. Epic’s own game store earned [[link removed]] $401 million in revenue last year.

SoftBank-Backed Fund Buys Accordia Golf for $3.5B

PGA Tour/Design: Alex Brooks

Accordia Golf, which operates around 170 golf courses in Japan, is being acquired by SoftBank’s Fortress Investment Group in a $3.5 billion deal [[link removed]], three months after initial reports [[link removed]] that owner MBK Partners was looking to sell.

The SoftBank-affiliated investment fund owns hotels in Japan and intends to raise its corporate value by funneling some of those customers to the country’s biggest golf course chain.

Accordia is expected to purchase additional driving ranges and golf courses after deal-close. The company already accounts for 12% of Japan’s golf market.Fortress is expected to go through an initial public offering or sell equity in the coming years to “recoup its investment.”

SoftBank acquired [[link removed]] Fortress in 2017 for $3.3 billion, but reports [[link removed]] earlier this month suggested SoftBank may now be interested in selling the group. Softbank’s second-quarter earnings report last week saw net assets fall $54 billion to roughly $184 billion.

As of June 30, Fortress had $53.9 billion [[link removed]] in assets under management. KKR, Blackstone, Kakao, and Naver Line have been listed as potential buyers.

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Known for developing the best fabrics on the market, Rhoback is one of the fastest-growing activewear brands in the country. And rightfully so.

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Today's Action

NHL

10:00 PM

Blackhawks (+120) at Kraken (-140)

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NCAA

07:00 PM

Central Michigan (-120) at Ball State (+100)

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NBA

10:10 PM

Mavericks (+260) at Suns (-335)

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*All times are EST unless otherwise noted.

*Odds/lines subject to change. T&Cs apply. See [[link removed]] for details.

Question Of The Day

What do you think of the Crypto.com Arena name?

Love It [[link removed]] Hate It [[link removed]]

Tuesday’s Answer

41% of respondents are looking for a new job.

Written by Ernest Baker [[link removed]], Abigail Gentrup [[link removed]], Owen Poindexter [[link removed]]

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Front Office Sports College [[link removed]] - Business of College Sports Newsletter

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Front Office Sports Insights [[link removed]] - The most promising opportunities where sports meets industry

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