September 28, 2022

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IN PARTNERSHIP WITH

Pro and college teams alike are bracing [[link removed]] for Hurricane Ian, a Category 3 forecasted to make landfall along Florida’s Gulf Coast on Wednesday. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers moved operations and practices to Miami — while the NFL is considering moving Sunday night’s home game against the Chiefs to a neutral site.

NBA Stars Buying Major League Pickleball Team [[link removed]]

Design: Alex Brooks

Some NBA champions with a knack for forward-thinking investments are getting in on pickleball as the sport gains popularity across America.

LRMR Ventures, the family office of LeBron James and his business partner Maverick Carter, are purchasing a Major League Pickleball team as part of an all-star consortium.

NBA stars Draymond Green and Kevin Love, investment firm SC Holdings, Relevent Sports Group co-owner and CEO Daniel Sillman, and SpringHill Company CMO Paul Rivera are also part of the purchasing group.The team, whose name is yet to be determined, will be part of a four-team MLP expansion to 16 teams.Retired NFL champion Drew Brees, entrepreneur Gary Vaynerchuk, and Milwaukee Bucks owner Marc Lasry also own MLP teams.

“Having LRMR Ventures, SC Holdings, and their incredible group as owners and investors in Major League Pickleball is not just great for MLP, but it’s a watershed moment for pickleball in general,” said MLP founder Steve Kuhn.

The league’s prize purse across six 2023 tournaments will be more than $2 million.

LRMR Ventures and SC Holdings have linked up [[link removed]] before, co-leading a $29 million investment in Canyon Bicycles in July.

Pickleball Mania

A Sports and Fitness Industry Association survey from February found [[link removed]] that 4.8 million people in the U.S. played pickleball in 2021, representing average annual growth of 11.5% over five years.

The sport shows impressive age diversity, with all of the five main age brackets representing at least 12% of all players. It is most popular among the 18-34 demographic, which makes up 28.8% of all U.S. players.

LeBron, Draymond, and Love may have just boarded a rocket ship. There are 66 new places to play [[link removed]] pickleball opening up in the U.S. every month — and MLP aims to grow pickleball to 40 million players by 2030.

Editor’s note: SC Holdings is an investor in Front Office Sports.

Steve Ballmer Retains Title as Richest U.S. Sports Owner [[link removed]]

Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Steve Ballmer is ready to welcome both the Olympics and the World Cup to his adopted city soon, but in the meantime he’s making the most of owning the Los Angeles Clippers.

Forbes has once again ranked [[link removed]] Ballmer, former CEO of Microsoft, as America’s richest sports owner for the eighth consecutive year. His net worth is an estimated $83 billion.

Newcomer Rob Walton ($56.7 billion) took second after his purchase of the Denver Broncos.Four different sports round out the top five: David Tepper ($18.5 billion) owns the Carolina Panthers and Charlotte FC, Robert Pera ($17.6 billion) owns the Memphis Grizzlies, and Steve Cohen ($17.5 billion) owns the New York Mets. Cleveland Cavaliers owner and Quicken Loans founder Daniel Gilbert ($17.3 billion) landed at No. 6 despite losing 44% of his wealth.Jerry Jones made the biggest one-year jump, 75.8%, to $16 billion. His $8 billion Dallas Cowboys are the most valuable NFL team.

Ballmer told Front Office Sports that even with the explosive growth in value across sports, he intends to remain focused on basketball.

Over the past four years, he successfully led an effort to renovate all 350 public basketball courts in L.A. after a $10 million donation to the city’s parks foundation.

Jump Ballmer

“I had a love for L.A. before I spent time here, and since I’ve been involved with the Clippers, I just like it more and more every year,” Ballmer told FOS. “If you’re going to be participants in the city like we are, we’re going to go all in.”

The Clippers are moving from Crypto.com Arena to the $2 billion Intuit Dome, opening in 2024.

The venue could be a host site for the Olympic Games in 2028. The Forum, which Ballmer bought for $400 million in 2020, is reportedly set [[link removed]] to host gymnastics.

IN PARTNERSHIP WITH KAULIG RACING

Making a Lasting Impact Off the Track

While Kaulig Racing [[link removed]] is in the business to win championships, there’s a strong culture around opportunities to give back.

Kaulig Giving, the charity arm of Kaulig, is focused on helping those around them and supporting their community. They partner with charitable organizations in Northeast Ohio and beyond, including the LeBron James Family Foundation and the NASCAR Foundation.

To wrap up our series, Behind the Wheel With Matt Kaulig, our Editor in Chief Ernest Baker chats with Matt in the fifth episode [[link removed]] on Kaulig Giving, discussing partnerships that range from healthcare, education, athletics, and other opportunities for children, and the importance to Matt of giving back to the community.

Watch now [[link removed]].

Fitness Company Nautilus Considers a Sale [[link removed]]

Nautilus Inc

Fitness equipment company Nautilus is considering a sale of the company as part of a review of strategic alternatives.

Nautilus — maker of gym equipment, exercise bikes, and treadmills as well as the owner of Bowflex and Schwinn indoor cycling bikes — stated [[link removed]] the review will “identify opportunities to accelerate the company’s digital transformation … and enhance shareholder value.”

The company aims [[link removed]] to reach $1 billion in revenue with 2 million digital members by the end of fiscal 2026.

Nautilus is on pace to reach 500,000 members on its digital fitness platform JRNY by fiscal year-end 2023. As of June 30, JRNY exceeded 360,000 members.

Last month, the company reported [[link removed]] first-quarter net sales of $54.8 million, a 70.3% year-over-year decline but an 11% increase from pre-pandemic Q1FY2020. In the past 12 months, the company’s stock plummeted [[link removed]] nearly 84% to a market cap of $52.8 million.

Nautilus doesn’t have a time frame to conclude the board-launched review, which arrives shortly after the company announced [[link removed]] board member Anne Saunders would become board chair.

Naut Alone

Nautilus reported multiple record quarters in its last fiscal year, but is now facing tough decisions similar to other connected fitness companies as people return to the gym.

Peloton, which reported [[link removed]] a 28% year-over-year decline in fourth-quarter revenue to $678.7 million, recently announced plans to eliminate nearly 800 jobs. Tonal, which is backed by Serena Williams and LeBron James, announced [[link removed]] plans to cut 35% of its workforce in July.

FTX Acquires Voyager’s Assets After Bankruptcy [[link removed]]

Stephen Brashear-USA TODAY Sports

Sports deals in limbo after Voyager Digital filed for bankruptcy in July may have some hope — crypto exchange FTX won Voyager’s assets for $1.4 billion at a bankruptcy auction.

Of the bid, $1.3 billion was for the fair market value of the assets [[link removed]], with $111 million for “additional consideration” in anticipated incremental value.

In the Chapter 11 filing earlier this year, Voyager estimated [[link removed]] that it had more than 100,000 creditors.It claimed it held between $1 billion and $10 billion in assets.

The sale to FTX will need to win a vote by creditors and pass “other customary closing conditions.”

Voyager had entered an agreement with the NWSL in December — one of the soccer league’s largest ever — in which players would receive financial education on cryptocurrencies and a portion of the deal in cryptocurrency.

Outlets reported last month that the NWSL told players that they could be out of money due to the bankruptcy, but NWSLPA executive director Meghann Burke said [[link removed]] no players were missing paychecks, and “nothing in the CBA is in crypto.”

Starts and Stops

Last year, Voyager became an international partner of the Dallas Mavericks, while also entering a deal with former NFL player Rob Gronkowski and extending that of NASCAR driver Landon Cassill.

In 2021, FTX paid [[link removed]] $135 million for a 19-year naming rights deal for the home of the Miami Heat, but reportedly pulled out of a jersey patch deal with the Los Angeles Angels this year.

SPONSORED BY COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY

Growth, Impact and Innovation

Join the Columbia University Sports Management [[link removed]] Masters program, the only sports management graduate program in the Ivy League.

In this program, you’ll:

Access opportunities for internships and special projects with leading sports organizations. Cultivate leadership experience with the program’s sophisticated professional development and coaching development process. Take advantage of direct access to industry events, gatherings, panels, and speakers, drawing on the abundant resources of their faculty and New York City location.

Get face time with the program’s leadership and get your questions answered in their upcoming online information session [[link removed]] on Monday, October 3 at 11:00 a.m. ET.

Hear more about the program and why they are #InALeagueOfOurOwn [[link removed]].

Conversation Starters In Metaverse Essentials: Building the Future, a free five-lesson course, execs from Meta and top sports organizations examine the growing relationship between the metaverse and the sports industry. Register now [[link removed]]!* Eli Manning told [[link removed]] Front Office Sports that he didn’t intend to be critical of Denver Broncos quarterback Russell Wilson on a recent edition of the ManningCast. PGA Tour commissioner Jay Monahan has no interest [[link removed]] in a truce with LIV Golf, while Bryon DeChambeau wants players from each tour to face off in a golf “Super Bowl.” Have you seen Conor McGregor’s Lamborghini yacht [[link removed]]? Today's Action

MLB

07:40 PM

White Sox (-115) at Twins (-105)

Bet Now [[link removed]]

MLB

07:05 PM

Braves (-215) at Nationals (+185)

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MLB

06:40 PM

Royals (+115) at Tigers (-135)

Bet Now [[link removed]]

*All times are EST unless otherwise noted.

*Odds/lines subject to change. T&Cs apply. See [[link removed]] for details.

Question Of The Day

Would you consider an electric or hybrid vehicle for your next vehicle purchase?

Yes [[link removed]] No [[link removed]]

Tuesday’s Answer

48% of respondents plan on attending women’s sporting events this year.

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Written by Owen Poindexter [[link removed]], Abigail Gentrup [[link removed]] Edited by Matthew Tabeek [[link removed]], Brian Krikorian [[link removed]]

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The Leadoff [[link removed]] - Daily business of sports podcast

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