December 30, 2021

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South Carolina beat North Carolina in the 2021 Duke’s Mayo Bowl on Thursday, and afterward, 4.5 gallons of Duke’s mayonnaise were dumped on Gamecocks coach Shane Beamer. Don’t feel too bad: The total payout for the bowl was $4.78 million and USC will reportedly take $1.32 million.

Penguins Limited Partner Tries to Block $900M Sale

Charles LeClaire-USA TODAY Sports/Design: Alex Brooks

A limited partner of the Pittsburgh Penguins is attempting to block the team from joining the vaunted roster of Fenway Sports Group.

Wildfire Productions filed [[link removed]] a lawsuit, saying that majority owners Ron Burkle and Mario Lemieux actively denied limited partners from collecting information and providing input on the deal.

“Through clandestine back-room maneuvering, Mr. Burkle and Mr. Lemieux are orchestrating an unlawful cash-out for themselves, while steamrolling and freezing out their Limited Partners, including Wildfire,” the company wrote.

In November, Fenway Sports Group agreed [[link removed]] to buy a controlling stake in the Penguins reportedly for around $900 million.The deal received unanimous approval from the NHL’s board of governors on Dec. 9.

The Penguins brushed off the suit, saying “This is a regrettable situation where a single limited partner is claiming rights to which they are not entitled.”

The team also noted that Wildfire is receiving five times its original investment, and that the stake value “increased over 12 times as a result of this transaction.”

A Growing Portfolio

Fenway also owns the Boston Red Sox, Liverpool F.C., Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing, and a majority stake in the New England Sports Network.

In March, RedBird Capital Partners invested $750 million in Fenway at a $7.35 billion valuation. LeBron James and Maverick Carter followed suit later that month at an undisclosed amount.

Chelsea FC Records $196.4M In Losses

Chelsea FC/Design: Alex Brooks

Chelsea FC reported its full-year earnings on Thursday, recording a post-tax loss of $196.4 million for the year ending June 30, 2021.

The year prior, Chelsea posted [[link removed]] $49 million in profit. The club attributes the loss to “matches taking place behind closed doors as well as decreased profit on players’ sales and increased player amortisation.”

Matchday income fell $62 million to $9.7 million.

“Had it not been for the matchday impact of the pandemic, we are confident we would have achieved record turnover this year,” club chairman Bruce Buck said. Buck believes COVID-19 will continue to impact the club’s finances.

Chelsea isn’t the only European soccer club that reported [[link removed]] losses during the same period.

Juventus lost $246.6 million, with revenue declining 16% year-over-year to $565.1 million.Manchester United posted $126.8 million in losses for the year.

Chelsea’s broadcasting revenue grew [[link removed]] from $246.3 million to $369.3 million thanks to the delayed 2019-20 season and the club’s success in the Champions League.

Chelsea’s Future

During the year, Chelsea replaced [[link removed]] manager Frank Lampard with Thomas Tuchel, who signed an extension in June.

Chelsea’s accounts say the club is “reliant on Fordstam Limited for its continued support” and will be for the “foreseeable future.” The team’s parent company is owned by Roman Abramovich.

SPONSORED BY ATHLETIC GREENS

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Discovery-WarnerMedia Merger Clears IRS Hurdle

WarnerMedia/Design: Alex Brooks

The historic Discovery-WarnerMedia mega-merger will be able to proceed as structured after it received [[link removed]] approval from the IRS.

The $43 billion deal will bring together WarnerMedia’s Turner Sports, TNT, TBS, CNN, Warner Bros., HBO, and Discovery’s Eurosport, Food Network, HGTV, and others.

Discovery also has the rights to the Olympics across Europe through 2024 in a six-year, $1.5 billion deal, and is reportedly in talks [[link removed]] to form a joint venture with BT Sport, which holds U.K. Premier League rights.

On Wednesday, WarnerMedia-owner AT&T revealed that the deal received a favorable rating from the IRS as a “Reverse Morris Trust,” a transaction type designed to be tax-free for shareholders.

Under a Reverse Morris Trust, AT&T will first spin off WarnerMedia before merging it with Discovery.To remain tax-exempt, AT&T shareholders must retain a majority stake in the company. As currently structured, they will receive 71% of the new company’s shares and be able to name seven of 13 board members.Discovery CEO David Zaslav and CFO Gunnar Wiedenfels will run the new company. Not a Done Deal

While the merger received [[link removed]] the blessing of the European Commission earlier this week, Democratic lawmakers wrote to the Department of Justice this month asking for close scrutiny of the deal.

If completed, the combined entity will be worth around $130 billion and hold broadcast rights to the NBA, NHL, and Olympics.

Conversation Starters In The Leadoff, Apple and Meta compete for VR and fitness talent, Peloton plunges in Google search trends, an MLB analyst pushes for a game at a Negro League stadium, and a Denver Broncos lawsuit could open the door for a new owner. Click here to listen [[link removed]]. A group that includes Indianapolis Colts owner Jim Irsay and TV personality Jay Glazer have donated more than $600,000 to a fundraiser [[link removed]] that will benefit the 11-year-old son of late ESPN reporter Jeff Dickerson, who also lost his mother two years earlier. Battle royale game “Fortnite” was offline [[link removed]] for seven hours on Wednesday due to server issues caused by a Winterfest event that rewards players for completing challenges. So far, Devin Booker has kept a relatively low profile for such an immense talent — but surely his cover’s blown now. On Wednesday, the 25-year-old became the seventh-youngest in NBA history [[link removed]]to reach 10,000 points. Subscribe to Sports Section for more [[link removed]] on the budding star.

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Market Movers

U.S. stocks experienced gains across all three major indexes on Thursday. Here’s a look at how sports-related stocks performed:

RCI [[link removed]]

Rogers Communications Inc.

[[link removed]]

$47.19

[[link removed]]

+0.17%

[[link removed]] T [[link removed]]

AT&T, Inc.

[[link removed]]

$24.78

[[link removed]]

+0.28%

[[link removed]] MCRI [[link removed]]

Monarch Casino & Resort, Inc.

[[link removed]]

$74.00

[[link removed]]

+0.35%

[[link removed]] MSGS [[link removed]]

Madison Square Garden Sports Corp

[[link removed]]

$174.49

[[link removed]]

+0.47%

[[link removed]] BYD [[link removed]]

Boyd Gaming Corp.

[[link removed]]

$65.45

[[link removed]]

+0.99%

[[link removed]] (Note: All as of market close on 12/30/21) Sponsored by Learn More [[link removed]] Listing of securities is not a recommendation to trade. Sponsored by Learn More [[link removed]] Listing of securities is not a recommendation to trade. What to Watch

The Pittsburgh Panthers (11-2) face the Michigan State Spartans (10-2) tonight at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.

How to Watch: 7 p.m. ET on ESPN

Betting Odds: Spartans -3.5 || ML -160 || O/U 56* ( Bet on DraftKings [[link removed]])

Pick: Expect the Spartans to dominate in the trenches. Take Michigan State to cover.

Who ya got? Reply to this newsletter with your prediction for the Pittsburgh-Michigan State winner and final score.

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

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

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