The Walt Disney Co. is poised to reap a windfall from college football ad sales on ESPN and ABC this year.

This season’s coverage should generate well over $700 million in combined ad sales from more than 350 advertisers across Disney’s linear and digital networks, sources told Front Office Sports. 

Disney has sold roughly 90% of its college football inventory for the season and signed 36 new sponsors including Vrbo, DoorDash, and Old Dominion Freight Line. 

ABC/ESPN just posted its most-watched college football kickoff weekend since 2016, and many brands are paying for new, customized integrations.

• Xfinity sponsored game action for ESPN’s Kickoff Week, while Allstate was the title sponsor of ABC’s Louisiana Kickoff.
• Chick-fil-A returned as title sponsor for kickoff games on Saturday and Monday, while Mercedes-Benz again sponsored the Labor Day Kickoff show on ESPN’s digital properties. 
• Capital One and Goodyear returned as presenting sponsors on Saturday nights.
• The College Football Playoff National Championship will be presented by AT&T.

“No one can offer what we offer from a distribution standpoint for sports — but college football specifically,” said Jim Minnich, SVP of revenue and yield management for Disney Advertising Sales.

Mighty Mouse

Disney’s ABC and ESPN are the dominant networks for college football. 

On Kickoff Weekend, Disney, which commands roughly two-thirds of the college football viewing audience, offered 17 games across ABC, ESPN, ESPN2 and ESPNU — drawing nearly 82% of all college football viewing.

A U.S. International Trade Commission judge has sided with DISH Network in a case alleging that Peloton, iFit, and Lululemon’s Mirror infringed on patents.

DISH Network filed the complaint against the companies in April 2021 for infringing on streaming technology through workout equipment from August 2016 to March 2021.

• Peloton offers connected stationary bikes and other equipment.
• iFit, previously known as ICON Health & Fitness, owns connected fitness manufacturer NordicTrack.
• Lululemon bought connected fitness brand Mirror for $500 million in 2020.

“Customers of these products could just as easily exercise in front of their existing television — in particular, a television that is lawfully using the technology of the Asserted Patents,” DISH Network stated.

DISH Network previously requested that the ITC ban the fitness equipment from entering the U.S.

Patent Problems

The fitness companies have also been sued by each other.

Peloton — whose CEO stepped down on Monday — and iFit previously sued each other for patent infringement. iFit requested that the U.S. International Trade Commission block the import of Peloton’s Bike+ devices.

In May, the companies settled all ongoing litigation. iFit removed some on-demand leaderboard technology from its offerings, and Peloton agreed to license iFit patents dealing with remote control technology.

DAZN is working its way into markets across Europe — and sees profitability on the horizon in at least one region.

The sports streamer said it believes it will be profitable in the DACH group — Germany, Austria, and Switzerland — within 12-to-18 months. 

DAZN doubled its monthly subscription cost in the region to around $30, starting in February, and has invested heavily in sports rights there.

• Beginning with the 2021-22 season, DAZN shares domestic broadcasting rights to Bundesliga, in three-year deals worth $4.4 billion in total.
• DAZN beat out Sky for German rights to the UEFA Champions League over those three seasons.
• The sports streamer also won rights to the NFL in the DACH region starting in 2023.

Earlier this month, the streaming service scored exclusive broadcast rights for Spanish women’s soccer’s La Liga Profesional de Fútbol Femenino in a five-year deal beginning next season.

Betting Big

In August, the company’s sportsbook, DAZN Bet, went live in its native U.K. and has plans to expand to Spain and other European countries where it can receive the appropriate licensing.

DAZN Bet is also looking to gain a foothold in North America by launching in the Canadian province of Ontario, which includes Toronto and Ottawa.

Sporting goods retailer Olympia Sports has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, with plans to close all of its remaining retail locations by the end of the month.

The decision will allow Olympia Sports to retain employees while facilitating the process of its closure after COVID-related issues and online competition led to poor sales.

• Olympia Sports has 324 employees, per court proceedings.
• It has $28.7 million in unsecured debt owed to 570 creditors.

Filing for bankruptcy comes after the Maine-based company initiated a liquidation process in July. At the time, it announced plans to close all of its remaining 35 brick-and-mortar locations by the end of September. At its peak, Olympia Sports operated more than 230 stores. 

Olympia Sports was acquired by private equity firm CriticalPoint Capital in 2019 through its athletic footwear and apparel retailer JackRabbit for an undisclosed amount.

Reeling Retailers 

Olympia Sports joins a growing list of sporting goods companies taking financial hits. 

Big 5 Sporting Goods generated $253.8 million in revenue in Q2 2022, down from $326 million during the same period last year. The company reported net income of $8.9 million during the quarter, down from a record $36.8 million in Q2 2021.

Academy Sports + Outdoors reported a 7.1% year-over-year dip in first-quarter sales — while Dick’s Sporting Goods‘ Q1 revenue was more than $200 million less than Q1 last year.