December 29, 2022
Read in Browser [[link removed]]
POWERED BY
Pelé, the only player to ever win three World Cups and Brazil’s all-time top scorer, has died. Pelé is often credited [[link removed]] with sparking soccer’s popularity in the U.S. when he arrived to play with the New York Cosmos in 1975. He was paid $7 million to unretire from Santos in Brazil to join a star-filled team that had the power to fill Giants Stadium. The standard-bearer for “the beautiful game” was 82.
College Athletics College Football Playoff Tickets Reach $50K [[link removed]]
Adam Cairns-The Columbus Dispatch
The price of tickets to this year’s College Football Playoff games could empty some pockets.
The most expensive tickets to this year’s Peach Bowl — the playoff semifinal between Georgia and Ohio State at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta on Saturday — are going for north of $50,000, with the average [[link removed]] ticket price at $697 and the starting price at around $495.
The Fiesta Bowl, which will see Michigan and TCU face off in the other playoff semifinal, is a much cheaper game to catch. Tickets start at $390 and go up to around $4,000.
Fans wanting to go to the national championship at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, on Jan. 9 will have to shell out significantly more.
The current average price for a game ticket is $3,000. Some reports suggest fans can find tickets as low as $1,180. Playoff Presence
In the next few years, college football fans will likely have a much better chance to attend playoff games.
The CFP announced [[link removed]] Dec. 1 that it would expand to 12 teams for the 2024-25 season. The first round will be played at home sites, the New Year’s Six bowls will rotate quarterfinals and semifinals, and the national championship game will take place a week later than usual.
Teams Manchester United Takeover Could Happen ‘Very Soon’ [[link removed]]
Manchester United
Manchester United could be turning the corner to welcome a new owner.
A takeover of the Premier League team “could be coming very soon,” according [[link removed]] to The Athletic. It was previously reported that the Raine Group intends to complete a sale in the first financial quarter of 2023.
The Glazer family, who purchased the team for around $1.5 billion in 2005, announced [[link removed]] plans in November to explore strategic alternatives for the club following continued criticism — fans have protested what they see as misguided management and a lack of investment in the team and stadium.
Manchester United was last valued [[link removed]] at $4.6 billion by Forbes. The Glazers are reportedly [[link removed]] looking for a price above $7.2 billion.
At the 2022 FIFA World Cup in Qatar, Avram Glazer told [[link removed]] reporters that “it’s not necessarily a sale. It’s a process, and we’re going forward with the process so we’ll see what happens.”
Manchester’s Money
Earlier this month, Manchester United’s board opted not to distribute a dividend for fiscal 2023, a practice that’s been in place since 2016. The team was the only Premier League club to collect a dividend.
United earned [[link removed]] $176.7 million in the third quarter, a 13.6% year-over-year increase, but also took a $32.6 million loss.
SPONSORED BY NETSUITE
Packing Stadiums With Efficiency
As a leader in the sport and entertainment world, Comcast Spectato [[link removed]] r [[link removed]] manages the Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia, where they host everything from Flyers and 76ers games to concerts, roller-skating nights, and beyond.
Of course, managing that many different events can get overwhelming – and when their in-house system wasn’t cutting in, Comcast Spectator went looking to sign with someone else.
Switching to NetSuite, Comcast Spectator subbed out inefficient systems and slow processes for a seamless new cloud-based system [[link removed]].
Now, Wells Fargo Center employees can work from anywhere. That means quicker month-end closing, more day-to-day time savings, and more time freed up to expand their business into exciting new areas (like esports!).
Learn how [[link removed]] to transform your business with NetSuite by automating business processes, improving operational awareness, and giving your organization greater control over resources.
Deals You’re Out! MLB Umps Drop FTX Patches [[link removed]]
Ron Chenoy-USA TODAY Sports
Major League Baseball is the latest entity separating itself from embattled cryptocurrency exchange FTX.
The first major sports league to secure a deal with a crypto exchange will no longer have its umpires wear [[link removed]] an FTX patch on their uniforms after securing a pact with FTX.US last year.
The decision comes after FTX — along with more than 130 affiliated companies — filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.
In January, FTX raised [[link removed]] $400 million, valuing the company at $32 billion. Its deal with MLB made FTX the league’s first-ever umpire uniform patch partner. FTX branding was displayed across telecasts, MLB.com, and social media. The MLPA also had a deal with FTX, which allowed players to participate in promotions.
FTX’s bankruptcy caused the Miami Heat and Miami-Dade County to terminate a 19-year, $135 million arena naming rights deal.
The Mercedes-AMG Petronas Formula 1 team also suspended its sponsorship pact with the exchange.
Historic Deal Lost
Esports organization Team SoloMid severed ties with FTX in November. TSM — the most valuable [[link removed]] esports company in 2022 at $540 million — was in the second year of a 10-year naming rights deal worth $210 million, the most lucrative sponsorship deal in esports history.
Conversation Starters In The Leadoff, the NFL dominates Christmas viewership, Atlanta builds its importance in college sports, U.S. mobile sports betting reaches $80 billion in wagers in 2022, and Microsoft responds to the FTC’s lawsuit over its $68.7 billion deal for Activision Blizzard. Click here to listen [[link removed]]. Pac-12 commissioner George Kliavkoff is open to selling [[link removed]] data that could be used by sports betting providers. Clemson has broken ground [[link removed]] on its $27.5 million women’s sports facilities expansion, which includes a renovated rowing center, new lacrosse stadium, and gymnastics facility.
SPONSORED BY POINTSBET
Boost Your Betting Odds This Season
Few things in life are as electrifying as going on a betting hot streak.
The only issue is, those “hot streaks” can be hard to come by… unless you have the right information.
That’s exactly where PointsBet’s Hustle newsletter [[link removed]] comes in.
The PointsBet Hustle spotlights the best bets, juiciest boosts and strongest insights to make you a first-string, franchise-tag, “throw ‘em another $100M guaranteed on their contract extension”-level bettor.
A fresh edition [[link removed]] hits your inbox three times a week (on Thursday, Sunday, and Monday), meaning you get the absolute most up-to-date odds, stats, and news needed to bet better than ever.
It’s not too late to beat the odds this NFL season. Sign up [[link removed]] for PointsBet’s Hustle newsletter.
What to Watch
The Dallas Cowboys (11-4) face the Tennessee Titans (7-8) on “Thursday Night Football” at Nissan Stadium.
How to Watch: 8:15 p.m. ET on Amazon Prime Video
Betting Odds: Cowboys -13.5 || ML -800 || O/U 40
Refer Friends, Win Merch
Ready to rep your favorite newsletter? Refer your friends and colleagues to Front Office Sports and you could win FOS merchandise.
It’s easy to spread the word. Copy and paste your unique link below and share it in an email or on your timeline.
Referral Count: 0
Copy your invite link: [link removed] [[link removed]]
Or share on social media: Advertise [[link removed]] Awards [[link removed]] Learning [[link removed]] Video [[link removed]] Podcasts [[link removed]] Pro [[link removed]] Written by Abigail Gentrup [[link removed]], Justin Byers [[link removed]] Edited by Matthew Tabeek [[link removed]]
If this email was forwarded to you, you can subscribe here [[link removed]].
Update your preferences [link removed] / Unsubscribe [link removed]
Copyright © 2022 Front Office Sports. All rights reserved.
80 Pine Street Suite 3202 New York, NY 10005
