June 24, 2022

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IN PARTNERSHIP WITH

A day after celebrating the 50th anniversary of Title IX, top athletes and teams are reacting passionately [[link removed]] to the overturning of Roe v. Wade.

Fanatics Preparing to Bet Big on Tipico [[link removed]]

Tipico

Fanatics is in talks to acquire German sports betting company Tipico, according to CNBC.

Fanatics is looking to tap into the sports betting market after CEO Michael Rubin sold [[link removed]] his 10% stake in Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment — owners of the Philadelphia 76ers and New Jersey Devils. Earlier this month, HBSE was valued at $3 billion.

Rubin’s decision allows Fanatics to enter the sports betting market after being prohibited by an NBA rule that barred [[link removed]] team owners from operating gambling platforms.

Fanatics, which is projected to generate more than $5 billion in revenue in 2022, has steadily expanded its portfolio outside of its bread-and-butter sportswear merchandising and retail.

It bought [[link removed]] trading card giant Topps in a deal valued at $500 million in January. The company was part of a consortium that purchased [[link removed]] Mitchell & Ness for $250 million.

The potential purchase of Tipico would immediately establish a footprint for the company in the U.S. betting market. Tipico currently holds betting licenses in Colorado and New Jersey.

Money to Spend

Fanatics will have no problem footing the bill for Tipico following the company’s latest funding round. Earlier this year, Fanatics raised [[link removed]] $1.5 billion, valuing the business at $27 billion.

The round — led by the NFL’s $320 million investment — included Brooklyn Nets owner Joseph Tsai’s Blue Pool Capital, Paris Saint-Germain owner Qatar Investment Authority, and others.

NBA Draft’s First-Round Picks Lock In Millions [[link removed]]

Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports

At Thursday night’s NBA Draft, prospects knew that they had to be one of the top 30 selections to get a guaranteed contract on the league’s rookie scale [[link removed]].

So fans can imagine Paolo Banchero’s excitement when he was called [[link removed]] as the No. 1 pick for the Orlando Magic. The former Duke player locked in around $9.09 million for his first year, $9.54 million for his second, and nearly $10 million for his team-option years.

Rookies drafted in the first round sign four-year contracts, with the first two guaranteed and the last two as team-option years [[link removed]].

Figures for the top, middle, and lower picks differ by millions of dollars, especially in the first year.

Chet Holmgren, No. 2 overall pick: $8.13 millionMark Williams, No. 15 overall pick: $3.06 millionPeyton Watson, No. 30 overall pick: $1.8 million

Players can sign anywhere from 80% to 120% on the scale. Rookie contracts can’t be extended until after the third year.

NBA vs. NFL

The NFL also has a rookie scale, but it includes bonuses. This year’s No. 1 pick was Travon Walker, who landed [[link removed]] a four-year, $41.4 million deal and a $27.3 million signing bonus. The NBA’s picks can be worth more over time if the NBA teams choose to exercise their salary increase.

IN PARTNERSHIP WITH KAULIG RACING

Forming the Next-Gen Racing Team

To build a winning team, Matt Kaulig established core values – having fun and being competitive. Whether in business or in sports, he knew that to win he had to build the best.

And that approach paid off – in NASCAR’s history, Kaulig Racing [[link removed]] is the fastest team to reach a win in the last 50 years.

In the second episode [[link removed]] of our new series, Behind the Wheel With Matt Kaulig, our Editor in Chief Ernest Baker chats with Matt Kaulig about the team’s early success, going from a one-car team to a three-car team, acquiring two charters, and partnering with Chris Rice.

Watch now [[link removed]].

Ottawa Senators Awarded Bid for Downtown Arena [[link removed]]

Ottawa Senators

The Ottawa Senators are one step closer to getting a new home.

The team, which Forbes last valued [[link removed]] at $525 million, reached [[link removed]] a memorandum of understanding with the National Capital Commission and a group of partners for an arena in the LeBreton Flats area.

Pending a few more steps — including approval from the City of Ottawa — the team will be able to move from the Canadian Tire Centre. Last season, the team’s average attendance was the lowest in the league.

The NCC said [[link removed]] in a release that it aims to reach a long-term land-lease agreement by the fall of 2023, adding that there are “clear targets related to sustainability, affordable housing, and benefits for the Algonquin Nation.”

The Senators were awarded the bid to develop in the same area in 2016, but negotiations fell apart in 2018 after the relationship between the late Senators owner Eugene Melnyk and his business partner John Ruddy went south, generating lawsuits and counter-lawsuits.

Melnyk, who purchased [[link removed]] the team for $92 million in 2003 to save it from bankruptcy, died on March 28.NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said [[link removed]] in May that the team is not for sale. Melnyk’s daughters, Anna and Olivia, remain in charge [[link removed]]. Behind the Build

Live Nation, Sterling Project Development, Tipping Point Sports, and Populous are partnering with the team on the arena, which would be on a 7.5-acre plot [[link removed]].

Anthony LeBlanc, the team’s president of business operations, said [[link removed]] the Senators will spend the “next series of months” looking at financing.

Conversation Starters In The Leadoff, the PGA Tour raises prize purses to compete with the LIV Golf Series, Nike fully pulls out of the Russian market, the Arizona Coyotes continue their hunt for a short- and long-term home, and MLB says yes to CBD deals. Click here to listen [[link removed]]. Shaquille O’Neal has purchased [[link removed]] a 5,269-square-foot mansion in suburban Dallas that was last listed at $1.22 million. In February, Jade-Li English broke ground with Klutch Sports, heading up the agency’s first women’s basketball division. In an interview during the Front Office Sports Title IX Summit [[link removed]], English spoke [[link removed]] about how the first year of NIL has been a huge game-changer, and how women in college sports have played a huge role in its importance. Want to stay at a resort in the mountains of Park City, Utah? Now is your chance! Enter to win [[link removed]] a grand-prize sweepstakes from Dollar Flight Club valued at $2,000. Official rules found here [[link removed]].*

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Implementing NFTs With the Chicago Bulls

One of the most well-known use cases of blockchain technology [[link removed]] as it relates to sports are NFTs. Online marketplaces such as NBA Top Shot – where you can own and trade officially licensed NBA and WNBA NFTs – have gained popularity in the last two years.

However, there is so much more to the world of sports NFTs – they allow organizations to create unique partnership opportunities and fan experiences, and they even allow fans to create and grow teams and leagues of their own in the metaverse.

Learn more about NFTs in the Field of Sports in Lesson 4 of Crypto in Sports Essentials [[link removed]], where Liam Killingstadt, Director of Insights at Front Office Sports, sits down with Dan Moriarty of the Chicago Bulls to discuss all this and more.

Sign up [[link removed]] for the course today.

Deltatre Sells for $842M in Leveraged Buyout

Find out exactly what’s happening in the private markets every week with highlights from our Front Office Sports Pro Deal Tracker.

We carefully monitor both public and private market data for a snapshot of the sports business landscape.

This week’s Pro Deal Tracker [[link removed]] highlights:

Deltatre, a provider of content and data management services for the sports and entertainment industry, received an undisclosed amount of financing from Legends Hospitality. The company entered a definitive agreement to be acquired by Bain Capital and Nextalia through an estimated $842 million leveraged buyout. The Seattle Sounders were reportedly valued at $680 million in a sale of 3% to 5% of the team to an unknown buyer, according to Forbes. The $680 million valuation would put the Sounders at a level equivalent to a middle-of-the-pack NHL team. Titletown Tech, a venture capital firm based in Green Bay, Wisconsin and backed by the Green Bay Packers, is raising $80 million for its second fund, per an SEC filing. The Wildcard Alliance, an independent game studio developing action games, raised $46 million in Series A venture funding in a deal led by Paradigm. Sports Gambling Guides, an operator of a sports marketing advertising agency promoting legal sports gambling sportsbooks and all advertisers interested in marketing to avid sports fans ages 21 to 41, raised $2 million of venture funding from Astralis Capital.

Try out the full Deal Tracker. [[link removed]]

Market Movers

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

UA [[link removed]]

Under Armour Inc

[[link removed]]

$8.39

[[link removed]]

+1.02%

[[link removed]] ATVI [[link removed]]

Activision Blizzard Inc

[[link removed]]

$77.93

[[link removed]]

+1.52%

[[link removed]] RCI [[link removed]]

Rogers Communications Inc.

[[link removed]]

$48.38

[[link removed]]

+1.61%

[[link removed]] NKE [[link removed]]

Nike, Inc.

[[link removed]]

$112.72

[[link removed]]

+3.42%

[[link removed]] LYV [[link removed]]

Live Nation Entertainment Inc

[[link removed]]

$86.71

[[link removed]]

+4.48%

[[link removed]] PLAY [[link removed]]

Dave & Buster`s Entertainment Inc

[[link removed]]

$35.70

[[link removed]]

+9.48%

[[link removed]] (Note: All as of market close on 6/24/22) What to Watch

Hulu has all the things you love to watch. From full seasons of exclusive series, current-season episodes, live sports, movies, Hulu Originals, and kids shows, Hulu has something for everyone.

If you’re taking it easy this weekend, book a stay at Hulu. No judgments, no obligations, and no reason to stop with Hulu’s endless entertainment.

How to Watch: Stream all of your favorite content on Hulu [[link removed]]*

*Sponsored content.

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Written by Justin Byers [[link removed]], Abigail Gentrup [[link removed]] Edited by Matthew Tabeek [[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]] - Professional education at the speed of culture

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