Ted Leonsis and Carlyle Group co-founder David Rubenstein are considering a bid for the Washington Nationals, but they also have a neighboring team on their radar.

The two have reportedly told people connected to the Baltimore Orioles that they would consider bidding if the team became available.

While the Nationals are likely to be sold at some point, the Orioles situation is cloudier.

• In June, Louis Angelos sued his brother, Orioles chairman and CEO John Angelos, and their mother, Georgia Angelos, alleging that John blocked a plan to sell the team.
• Louis’ attorneys stated that the brothers’ ailing father, Peter Angelos, established a trust through which Louis and John would share equally in the management and inheritance of all family assets, but John has been working to gain full control over the team.
• Georgia’s legal filings showed that she retained Goldman Sachs and Jones Day to provide services related to a planned sale.

In March, Forbes valued the Nationals at $2 billion and the Orioles at $1.4 billion.

The MASN Question

A sale of either team could lead to a resolution of the unique broadcasting arrangement between the two teams: The Orioles own 67% of MASN, the independent regional sports network that holds broadcast rights for both teams.

Leonsis could seek to buy out the Nationals’ rights, should he purchase the team. On Tuesday, his Monumental Sports & Entertainment took full control of NBC Sports Washington after purchasing Comcast’s 67% stake.

NBCSW broadcasts the Washington Wizards and Capitals, both of which are owned by Monumental.

Roger Federer is the world’s highest-paid tennis player for the 17th year in a row — despite not making a single dime on the court over the last year.

Federer hasn’t played a competitive match in nearly 14 months, but the Swiss athlete has still banked $90 million in off-court earnings. That puts him ahead of the world’s other top tennis stars by more than $30 million and makes him the only player in the top 10 to earn solely from off-court opportunities.

Naomi Osaka made her way to second on Forbes list, bringing in $1.2 million on the court and $55 million off. She’s followed by Serena Williams, Rafael Nadal, and Novak Djokovic.

• Williams: $35.1 million ($100,000 on; $35 million off)
• Nadal: $31.4 million ($6.4 million on; $25 million off)
• Djokovic: $27.1 million ($7.1 million on; $20 million off)

The list was rounded out by top 10 first-timer Emma Raducanu ($21.1 million), Daniil Medvedev ($19.3 million), Kei Nishikori ($13.2 million), Venus Williams ($12 million), and Carlos Alcaraz ($10.9 million). 

Together, the group made an estimated $316 million, just short of last year’s $320 million, but a significant decline from 2020’s $343 million. 

Changing of the Guard

Four of the list’s players are under the age of 30, and the older stars are on their way out. Serena Williams (40) recently announced she would soon retire, and Nadal (36) has acknowledged his own possible retirement following an injury.

Apparel brand Li Ning continues to rise in China, claiming market share from Nike and Adidas.

The brand grew 66% in value from last year to $3.4 billion, according to Kantar BrandZ’s annual evaluation of Chinese companies. Technical improvements and consumer nationalism both contributed to the rapid growth.

• Li Ning’s revenue grew 21.7% year-over-year in the first half of the year to $1.8 billion.
• Its net profits rose 11.6% to $319.6 million, despite a decline in margins to 17.6% from 19.2%. 
• While the company’s apparel sales dipped slightly from $739.1 million in H1 2021 to $716.4 million, footwear revenue jumped 47.1% to $986.8 million.

Nike, meanwhile, saw revenue in the Greater China region drop 20% year-over-year (excluding currency changes) in the fiscal quarter ending May 31 to $1.6 billion, led by $1.2 billion in footwear sales.

Tencent Still Tops

Tencent retained its spot as the most valuable brand in Kantar’s rankings at $204 billion, outpacing second-place Alibaba’s $137 billion.

The top 100 Chinese brands fell 20% in total value to $1.24 trillion, as pandemic and supply chain disruptions affected broad swaths of the economy.

The world’s top chess player is joining forces with the game’s biggest online platform.

Play Magnus Group, founded by world champion Magnus Carlsen, has accepted an $82.9 million acquisition offer from Chess.com. The deal is expected to be completed in six-to-eight weeks.

• Chess.com has more than 90 million members and hosts over 10 million games per day. 
• Play Magnus offers four chess playing and training apps for a bundled monthly subscription of $14.17.
• Both companies also host a range of tournaments.

Play Magnus owns several other brands, including training platform Chessable and the kid-focused Magnus Chess Academy. The company’s stock jumped more than 20% on Thursday in the wake of the news.

Good to Be King

Carlsen took home $1.2 million after successfully defending his title at the FIDE World Chess Championship last year against Ian Nepomniachtchi. 

He was 2020’s top earner in esports prize money with $510,587. Fellow grandmasters Hikaru Nakamura (7th, $324,645) and Wesley So (12th, $246,180) also made the list, which was otherwise dominated by “Call of Duty” players.

Carlsen, who has been world champion since 2013, stunned the chess world in July by announcing he would not defend his title. 

He continues to play in top-level tournaments, most recently winning the FTX Crypto Cup this month — part of this year’s nine-month Meltwater Champions Chess Tour, in which Carlsen has earned the most prize money winner to date, $146,500.