May 10, 2022

Read in Browser [[link removed]]

POWERED BY

Move over, Cracker Jack, and make way for some fish and chips. Major League Baseball announced a strategic partnership with London on Monday to host regular-season games in 2023, 2024, and 2026.

Soccer Kicking Hockey, Baseball for U.S. Popularity

Brace Hemmelgarn-USA TODAY Sports

The Premier League’s U.S. broadcast rights deal with Comcast, which begins this year, more than doubled the value of its previous contract. The U.K. league will rake in $2.7 billion over six years, compared to $1.1 billion for the last six-year period.

It’s yet another reminder of soccer’s skyrocketing popularity in the U.S. It may already be the fourth-most popular sport in the U.S. — and could surpass baseball in third later this decade.

The world’s most popular sport has historically been slow to catch on in the U.S., but that has changed in recent years.

A survey by Ampere Analysis from the fourth quarter of 2021 found [[link removed]] that 49% of U.S. sports fans like soccer, compared to 37% who like hockey. Baseball came in at 57%.In 2020, 17.8 million Americans played soccer, compared to 2.3 million who played ice hockey, according to the Sport and Fitness Association.That same trend held [[link removed]] among U.S. kids aged 13-17: 1.2 million played soccer regularly in 2020, compared to 243,000 who played ice hockey. World Cup Coming Up

With a FIFA World Cup scheduled for later this year and the global tournament coming to the U.S. in 2026, soccer is poised for more growth.

Houston Dynamo and Dash owner Ted Segal told [[link removed]] Front Office Sports last August that he foresees a “step change in enthusiasm [for U.S. soccer] that accrues to the benefit of MLS and NWSL,” resulting from the 2026 World Cup.

Foot Locker Aims to Bolster Adidas Sales as Nike’s Presence Fades

Bargain Moose

Foot Locker is working with Adidas to increase the sale of products from the German sportswear company at its stores, as Nike reduces its presence at the retailer.

The strategic deal between Foot Locker and Adidas follows record results for the former in FY2021, but an expectation of lowered revenue for the fiscal year ahead.

As part of the partnership, Foot Locker will lead Adidas’ basketball category.There is a target for the deal to generate $2 billion in total sales by 2025.Adidas is expected to generate up to $105 million in revenue in 2022 from the deal.

Foot Locker generated [[link removed]] $2.3 billion in sales in Q4 2021, a 6% increase year-over-year. Total sales reached $9 billion in 2021, a 19% uptick compared to FY2020. The company projects its revenue to drop [[link removed]] in FY2022 due to expectations that it will not sell as many products from its top vendor, Nike. The Oregon-based retailer is selling more of its products directly to consumers.

As a result, no single vendor will represent more than 55% of Foot Locker’s supplier purchases beginning in Q4 2022, compared to 65% in Q4 2021.

Bright Future

Adidas is expecting a favorable FY2022 with sales projected [[link removed]] to increase between 11% and 13%. Brand Finance’s annual review revealed [[link removed]] that Adidas’ brand value grew 2% to $14.6 billion — the second-most valuable sportswear and athleisure [[link removed]] brand behind Nike at $33.2 billion.

Adidas projects its net income to grow to between $2 billion and $2.1 billion in FY2022.

SPONSORED BY TICKETMASTER

Innovations in Ticketing to Meet the Modern Fan

Thanks to the continued advancement of social media and virtual technology, fans now expect and crave unique and immersive live event experiences. The ticketing industry extends beyond just ticketing to help enhance the live experience [[link removed]] for all fans.

Modern Ticket Essentials: Beyond the Ticket, our new six-lesson course [[link removed]] presented by Ticketmaster, is here to help those looking to learn more about how modern ticketing helps teams and event organizers enhance the live experience for their fans.

This free online course provides a behind-the-scenes look at how Ticketmaster and their partners are thinking about the future of ticketing [[link removed]] – from personalization and data strategies to NFTs, distribution partnerships, and more.

Sign up today to earn your verified digital badge. Get started [[link removed]]!

FuboTV Posts Record Quarter

Fubo TV

Sports-focused streaming service FuboTV announced record earnings in the company’s latest earnings report.

FuboTV generated [[link removed]] $242 million in revenue in Q1 2022, a 102% increase year-over-year. The strong first quarter was driven by the company’s North American streaming business, which generated a record $236.7 million in revenue in Q1, a 98% increase compared to Q1 2021.

It reported $22.8 million in advertising revenue in Q1, a 23% increase year-over-year.Total paid subscribers reached 1.1 million, up 81% compared to Q1 2021.It posted $5.5 million in revenue outside the U.S. and Canada.

The New York-based company, which is the only live TV streaming platform with every Nielsen-rated sports channel, expanded its presence in the European market during the first quarter.

Q1 marked FuboTV’s first full quarter of being operational in France following the acquisition [[link removed]] of French streaming company Molotov SAS in December 2021 for $190 million. Molotov expands FuboTV’s global reach with operations in Burkina Faso, the Ivory Coast, Senegal, and Cameroon.

More than Streaming

FuboTV has made efforts to diversify its portfolio outside live TV streaming. In 2021, the company made its first investment in sports gambling with the acquisition of online sportsbook Vigtory.

The same year, Fubo Gaming, a subsidiary of FuboTV, launched Fubo Sportsbook in Arizona and Iowa. The online sports betting platform is the only owned-and-operated app in the U.S. that provides live sports viewing and wagering in a single ecosystem.

IPL Launching Women’s League As Viewership Rises

BCCI

The Indian Premier League announced plans in March for a women’s league by 2023, and the sport’s governing body is leveraging the men’s popularity to plan for the women’s future competition.

Jay Shah, the secretary for the Board of Control for Cricket in India and president of the Asian Cricket Council, told [[link removed]] Bloomberg that women’s cricket is typically overlooked — IPL, on the other hand, is estimated to be worth $7 billion and had 600 million viewers last year.

IPL is third to only the English Premier League and the National Football League in viewership, per BCCI estimates.

Shah expressed interest in auctioning broadcasting rights for the WIPL and its six teams in early 2023. The men’s league’s rights go up for an e-auction in June and will likely draw in bids of more than $5 billion over five years.

IPL’s popularity has hiked the bid base price to $4.2 billion and could include offers from Amazon, Disney, Sony, and Reliance Industries.Bidders can bid for live-streaming rights and TV rights individually. Before, it was sold in a closed bidding process as a bundle. Women’s Wins

“The more money we raise, the better it gets for cricket, as we will be investing it all back,” Shah said. The money from the men’s IPL rights auctions will help fund other subsidiaries like the women’s league.

Shah said he is hopeful the owners of the men’s 10 [[link removed]] IPL teams would bid for women’s teams, with the Rajasthan Royals Punjab Kings and Mumbai Indians already expressing [[link removed]] interest.

SPONSORED BY SAILGP

Chicago Takes Flight

Take one of the country’s premier sports towns, 2.71 million fans, and one of the most iconic skylines in the world and what do you get? An incredible live sports arena that race organizers have dubbed Chicago’s Skyline Stadium.

The Windy City will welcome SailGP [[link removed]] racing for the first time June 18-19 at the United States Sail Grand Prix Chicago at Navy Pier as the championship expands further into North America.

Expanding to 10 teams and 10 events for Season 3 [[link removed]], SailGP is on the rise. The total broadcast audience saw a 220% increase to 823.4 million viewers, with a dedicated broadcast audience of 39.2 million – representing a 131% increase on Season 1.

Learn more [[link removed]] about SailGP.

Conversation Starters New Era Cap Co. CEO Chris Koch has been charged [[link removed]] with reckless endangerment for allegedly attempting to run over his girlfriend’s ex-husband. The Sacramento Kings’ governing owner Vivek Ranadivé has hired [[link removed]] the team’s seventh coach in nine years, Mike Brown, who has spent the last six seasons as an assistant coach with the Golden State Warriors. The Los Angeles Dodgers are reportedly [[link removed]] in talks to play a game at Stade De France in Paris in 2025. From the NBA playoffs to the NFL Draft & the Kentucky Derby, Atmosphere Sports is bringing sports back to the center. Learn more [[link removed]].*

*Sponsored Content

Question Of The Day

Do you prefer Nike or Adidas?

Nike [[link removed]] Adidas [[link removed]]

Monday’s Answer

44% of respondents watched the Formula 1 Miami Grand Prix over the weekend.

Refer Friends, Win Merch

Ready to rep your favorite newsletter? Refer your friends and colleagues to Front Office Sports and you could win FOS merchandise.

It’s easy to spread the word. Copy and paste your unique link below and share it in an email or on your timeline.

Your custom referral link:

[link removed] [[link removed]]

Or use these one-tap sharing methods:

Email [mailto:?subject=Check%20out%20the%20Front%20Office%20Sports%20daily%20newsletter!&body=This%20newsletter%20from%20Front%20Office%20Sports%20summarizes%20the%20four%20biggest%20stories%20in%20the%20sports%20business%20world%20every%20weekday...all%20in%20five%20minutes%20or%20less.+https%3A%2F%2Fsparklp.co%2F0d56433a%2F%3Futm_source%3Demail] Twitter [[link removed]] Facebook [[link removed]]

Your referral count: 0

If this email was forwarded to you, you can subscribe here [[link removed]].

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

MORE FROM FRONT OFFICE SPORTS:

The Leadoff [[link removed]] - Daily business of sports podcast

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

Front Office Sports Scoreboard [[link removed]] - The biggest stories in sports and the numbers behind them

Front Office Sports Learning [[link removed]] - Education at the speed of culture

Copyright © 2022 Front Office Sports. All rights reserved.

80 Pine Street Suite 3202 New York, NY 10005

Advertise [[link removed]] / Update your preferences [link removed] / Unsubscribe [link removed]