The Fighting Irish are hoping to stay a solo act.

Amid rumors that the school could establish a long-term relationship with a Power 5 conference, Notre Dame is instead looking for a significant bump in its next media deal, according to CBS Sports.

• Notre Dame is reportedly seeking $75 million annually from NBC. 
• The university is currently taking in $22 million per year from the network. The long-term deal averages $15 million per year, but is back-loaded with the more expensive years at the end of the contract.
• The deal expires in 2025.

NBC is seeking rights for Power 5 conference games adjacent to Notre Dame’s on the college football schedule before committing to the school’s target valuation. The Big 12 and Big Ten have both emerged as potential targets for NBC.

The Big Ten also represents an alternate path for Notre Dame. The conference’s next media rights deal could top $1 billion, with $80 million to $100 million distributed to member schools each year.

Merger Muddled

The Big 12 and Pac-12 have reportedly ended talks about a potential merger. A source within the Big 12 told ESPN that a deal didn’t make sense for a number of reasons, including limited new revenue opportunities.

The two conferences discussed pooling media rights, coordinating on scheduling, or combining into a single conference.

A minority investor in AC Milan has been authorized to obtain documents as it attempts to block the sale of the Italian soccer club to private investment firm RedBird Capital Partners. 

U.S. District Judge Katherine Polk Failla has authorized Blue Skye Financial Partners, which owns a 4.3% stake in Milan, to obtain a “limited” number of documents to use in a Luxembourg court.

Blue Skye claims Elliot Management — Milan’s majority shareholder since 2018 — held talks “behind closed doors” about the potential sale of Milan to New York-based RedBird Capital. 

• In May, Red Bird Capital — which has $6 billion in assets under management — agreed to purchase Milan from Elliot in a deal valued at $1.3 billion. 
• Blue Skye’s claims are a breach of minority rights, and the firm hopes to prove Elliot “operated with malice or deceit.” 

Despite the potential scrutiny, Elliot has vowed to cooperate with the request and provide everything that is owed in defense of Blue Skye’s “frivolous and vexatious” claims. 

Elliot has invested as much as $838 million into the top-flight club since 2018, per Bloomberg.

On-Pitch Success 

The 14th-most valuable soccer club in the world, Milan won its 19th Serie A title in the 2021-22 season and has generated $257 million in revenue in 2022, up from $165 million in 2021.

Last month, the club extended its kit sponsorship deal with sportswear brand Puma. The Germany-based company will pay Milan $31.5 million annually over five years.

Private equity firms Juggernaut Capital Partners and Fiume Capital have acquired action sports platform Thrill One Sports & Entertainment for $300 million, according to The Wall Street Journal. 

The deal features investments from UFC president Dana White, television producer Craig Piligian, and the Dyrdek Machine — a venture creation studio backed by TV personality and former pro skateboarder Rob Dyrdek. 

Financing will be provided by Prudential Private Capital.

• Thrill One will host more than 70 events with more than 100 hours of live sports in 2022.
• It has a portfolio that includes Nitro Circus, Nitro Rallycross, and Street League Skateboarding.
• The platform will also produce over 300 episodes of linear TV in 2022.
• It has more than 40 million followers across its social media channels. 

Fiume and Juggernaut have already established a relationship through their co-ownership of 3Step Sports, a youth sports ecosystem that serves more than 3.2 million athletes in the U.S.

Investment in Motorsports 

Thrill One has an opportunity to take advantage of the growing interest in motorsports. 

The company is making investments in its Nitro Rallycross property, which features short, action-packed races on custom-built courses. The sport mounted its first U.S. tour in 2021, followed by a global tour for the 2022-23 season that began in June and runs through March 2023.

Thrill One has invested more than $3 million in developing Nitro Rallycross, sources told FOS.