June 3, 2022

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Want to watch a golf tournament sitting high above the first and 18th holes? Then head to St. George’s Golf & Country Club for next weekend’s Canadian Open. The venue’s [[link removed]] “Skyline Seats” will harness 22 people into seats 100 feet in the air for about 30 minutes a session — and yes, food and beverages will be provided.

Nike Co-founder Reportedly Bids Over $2B for Portland Trail Blazers [[link removed]]

Jaime Valdez-USA TODAY Sports

One of the sports world’s most prominent businessmen may finally enter the world of team ownership.

Nike co-founder Phil Knight and Los Angeles Dodgers co-owner Alan Smolinisky have put in an offer [[link removed]] to buy the Portland Trail Blazers for more than $2 billion, per Adrian Wojnarowski [[link removed]].

The team is currently owned by a trust in the name of former Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, who died in October 2018.Wojnarowski believes [[link removed]] Knight’s ownership would keep the Blazers in Portland long-term; there was speculation [[link removed]] the team could move to Seattle, but NBA owners reportedly prefer expansion for the city.

Knight has long been known for his donations to his alma maters, the University of Oregon and Stanford University, but this is his first personal foray into the professional sports world.

Nike’s eight-year, $1 billion apparel deal [[link removed]] with the NBA runs through the 2024-25 season.

Expansion Coming Soon?

In addition to Seattle, the NBA is eyeing Las Vegas as a site for a new team, and the addition of two new teams could happen [[link removed]] as early as 2024.

As for the Trail Blazers, Knight may have competition: MacKenzie Scott, the ex-wife of Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, is reportedly considering a bid. Scott would be the NBA’s first female owner.

The team confirmed [[link removed]] it had received an offer from Knight, but said that it is not for sale.

Bidding War for Broncos Ownership Expected to Escalate [[link removed]]

Isaiah J. Downing-USA TODAY Sports

The battle for the Denver Broncos is taking shape, with four groups duking it out for the coveted NFL team.

Second-round bids are due [[link removed]] on Monday, and proposals are likely to top $4.5 billion. With the team aiming to find new owners by the start of the next season in September, the process is expected to accelerate this month.

A group originally reported as led by Los Angeles Dodgers, Lakers, and Sparks part-owner Todd Boehly is in fact helmed by Clearlake Capital co-founder Jose E. Feliciano with business partner Behdad Eghbali. Clearlake, which manages around $43 billion, provided the bulk of the funding for Boehly’s purchase of Chelsea FC, but a Broncos purchase would come from the co-founders’ pockets. Both Feliciano and Eghbali are worth a reported $3.4 billion.Boehly and Dodgers co-owner Mark Walter are also part of that bidding group.

The other leading groups are led by Rob Walton, son of Walmart founder Sam Walton, along with Walmart chair Greg Penner, United Wholesale Mortgage CEO and former college athlete Mat Ishbia, and Philadelphia 76ers and New Jersey Devils co-owner Josh Harris.

Harris’ group includes Fanatics chair Michael Rubin and another Dodgers part-owner, Earvin “Magic” Johnson.

Allen Out?

While entertainment mogul Byron Allen has maintained a presence throughout the bidding process, he is now considered a long shot. Unlike other leading bidders, Allen has not visited the Broncos’ facilities, according to Denver TV station 9News.

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Sports leagues, teams, athletes and fans have quickly embraced crypto and its resulted in significant impacts on sponsorships, fan engagement, experiences and so much more. To learn more about the impact, Front Office Sports has partnered with Coinbase [[link removed]] for its latest course, Crypto in Sports Essentials [[link removed]].

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U.S. Women’s Open Closes Gap With $10M Purse [[link removed]]

Kyle Terada-USA TODAY Sports

The 2022 U.S. Women’s Open at Pine Needles Lodge & Golf Club in Southern Pines, North Carolina, is setting a standard in gender pay equality.

The four-day event will have a record $10 million purse up for grabs, a $4.5 million increase [[link removed]] compared to last year’s tournament at The Olympic Club in San Francisco.

Increasing the purse is a step to closing the gender pay gap, but players like Lydia Ko say [[link removed]] “there’s still a ways to go.”

The men’s 2021 U.S. Open purse was $12.5 million. Winner John Rahm took home $2.3 million. The 2022 Masters at Augusta National had a purse of $15 million, up from $11 million in 2021.The winner of this year’s U.S. Women’s Open will take home only $1.8 million.

The boosted purse comes after the USGA and non-profit organization ProMedica agreed to a long-term partnership [[link removed]] in January that included presenting- partner rights and elevating the U.S. Women’s Open purse. The deal also requires the purse to reach $12 million by 2026.

Growing Popularity

The total number of golfers worldwide has reached 66.6 million — up from 61 million five years ago. No segment has seen as much growth [[link removed]] since the pandemic began in March 2020 than female golfers, per the National Golf Foundation.

The percentage of women on courses hit 25% in 2021, up from 19% 10 years ago. In 2021, girls made up 35%, or 1.1 million, of junior golfers, compared to 15% in 2000.

Red Sox First MLB Team With In-Market Streaming Service [[link removed]]

Bob DeChiara-USA TODAY Sports

The Boston Red Sox may start a trend as the first MLB team to offer in-market games through a streaming service.

The team’s longtime broadcaster NESN is launching [[link removed]] streaming platform NESN 360, which will show Red Sox and Boston Bruins games, allowing fans to forgo a cable subscription.

The service will cost $29.99 per month.It will include live games and certain on-demand games, as well as content unique to the service.Fans who pay for an annual subscription of $329.99 will also receive eight tickets to a 2022 Red Sox game. Regional Streaming Network

MLB has long been tied to regional sports networks but has sought relationships with streaming services as more and more people move away from cable bundles.

This year, it began a seven-year deal worth $85 million annually with Apple TV+ for Friday night games, as well as a $30 million per-year deal with Peacock for Sunday morning matchups.

“You’re going to have to have an over-the-top strategy for fans to watch beyond just MLB.tv,” Jon Cohen, Frequency’s senior vice president of business development and distribution, told Front Office Sports. “That’s why getting revenue deals done with Apple and with NBC for Peacock is important. You start building up audiences on those platforms and training them to watch there.

“Unless you start getting it into the market, you don’t allow others to build the audience and the acumen.”

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Conversation Starters Quarterback Ryan Fitzpatrick is retiring [[link removed]] from the NFL, having earned an estimated $82.1 million over 17 seasons, according to Spotrac. The women’s national championship game between UNC and Boston College peaked [[link removed]] at 590,000 viewers, more than any other women’s college lacrosse game in history. Annika Sorenstam, the LPGA’s all-time money leader with $22.6 million, has returned [[link removed]] to the U.S. Women’s Open for the first time in 13 years. It’s the secret weapon to drive impact on your sponsorship programs. Nielsen Impact Score Pro enables teams, leagues and brands to maximize marketing and sponsorship investment opportunities in a highly competitive environment. Learn more [[link removed]].*

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Do you plan on buying or leasing an electric vehicle in the next six months?

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25% of respondents attend in-person fitness classes.

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Written by Owen Poindexter [[link removed]], Justin Byers [[link removed]] Edited by Matthew Tabeek [[link removed]]

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