January 4, 2023

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Tulane might only spend an annual $5.5 million on its football program, but it was enough for the Green Wave to upset USC — which spends [[link removed]] roughly $30 million per year on the gridiron — to win the Cotton Bowl, its first major bowl victory since 1934.

Leagues NHL Looks to Expand in Media, Not New Teams [[link removed]]

James Carey Lauder-USA TODAY Sports

NHL commissioner Gary Bettman thinks his league is ready to cash in on streaming.

Bettman told [[link removed]] Bloomberg that it’s “exciting” to see big tech companies like Amazon and Apple bidding on sports rights.

Bettman attributed much of the NHL’s recent revenue growth to its seven-year media deals with Disney and Turner for a respective $400 million and $225 million per season, both signed in 2021.

He noted that streaming services could look to live sports to grow their audiences, saying “cable and satellites got their penetration because of the appetite for sports.” The commissioner believes complementary programming that takes fans inside locker rooms has become increasingly important. “The millennials and Gen Zs, they want more than just the games now. They want behind-the-scenes,” said Bettman.

The league is also considering [[link removed]] schedule adjustments that would add more rivalry games.

Just Big Enough

While the other major U.S. leagues have all discussed adding teams, Bettman is content with the NHL’s current set of 32.

“We’re not looking to expand,” Bettman said. “We are getting expressions of interest, which we always listen to, as you should. But I don’t see anything in our immediate future.”

Leagues FIA President Green-Lights New Formula 1 Teams [[link removed]]

Jerome Miron-USA TODAY Sports

Traffic on Formula 1’s tracks could get a little heavier.

Mohammed Ben Sulayem, president of F1’s governing body FIA, tweeted [[link removed]] that he has asked his team at FIA “to look at launching an Expressions of Interest process for prospective new teams” for F1.

F1’s teams split their share of the series’ revenues. A new team would have to pay $200 million to offset the revenue dilution to other teams. F1 earned $715 million in the third quarter of 2022. Haas, which entered in 2016, was the last new team to join F1, but the exit of Marussia Virgin Racing has kept the number of teams at 10.

The Virgin team, originally known as Manor Grand Prix, was one of three teams that have departed since entering in 2010.

Looking to Merge

Andretti Autosport may have the inside track to enter F1.

The group, run by Michael Andretti, son of F1 legend Mario Andretti, received [[link removed]] funding from Guggenheim Partners to cover a potential F1 entry fee and infrastructure investments.

Andretti is constructing a $200 million, 575,000-square-foot facility in Indiana to house its racing operations, which is set to open in 2025.

Billionaire Calvin Lo has also expressed interest in founding an F1 team.

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Media PGA Tour, Warner Bros. Discovery Redo $2B Rights Deal [[link removed]]

Adam Hagy-USA TODAY Sports

The golf world is reconfiguring its international media setup.

The PGA Tour and Warner Bros. Discovery have restructured their 12-year, $2 billion international rights deal to account for the shuttering of the latter’s streaming service, GolfTV.

The PGA Tour will take back its media rights in Asia, Africa, Australia, New Zealand, and parts of Europe and Latin America not covered by WBD’s Eurosport and streaming service Discovery+. Those two networks will retain their PGA Tour rights and coverage where they operate in Europe and Latin America.

The PGA Tour and Discovery’s initial 2018 deal included the creation of GolfTV, which launched on Jan. 1, 2019 but closed in November 2022.

WBD cited changes in consumer behavior toward broad offerings — as opposed to specialized media products — in closing down GolfTV.

Warner Bros. merged with Discovery in April 2022 in a $43 billion deal with former WarnerMedia owner AT&T, bringing together a wide array of sports and other media properties.

Tiger Style

With one media operation closing, the PGA Tour looks toward the launch of another.

Tiger Woods and Rory McIlroy’s tech-forward golf league TGL is set to launch in January 2024, but it has already made some big moves.

Jon Rahm and Justin Thomas agreed to join the league in November. Last month, TGL parent company TMRW Sports struck [[link removed]] a deal with Palm Beach State College to create a new venue for its unique, tech-infused competition.

Real Estate Ravens’ New Lease Could Keep Them in Baltimore Until 2037 [[link removed]]

Mitch Stringer-USA TODAY Sports

The Baltimore Ravens are looking to stay at their longtime home field.

The Ravens — the 19th-most-valuable NFL franchise at $3.9 billion, per [[link removed]] Forbes — are seeking a long-term extension at M&T Bank Stadium with the facility’s landlord, the Maryland Stadium Authority.

The Ravens’ current lease expires [[link removed]] in 2027. A proposed new lease plans to keep the Ravens there until 2037. The facility underwent renovations in 2019 that cost [[link removed]] roughly $120 million. The MSA is also the landlord of Oriole Park at Camden Yards, home of MLB’s Baltimore Orioles.

A lease extension rests on Maryland’s Board of Public Works, which is set to meet Jan. 4 to discuss the matter. The new proposed lease agreement would require [[link removed]] the Ravens to pay no rent at M&T Bank Stadium but be responsible for operational and maintenance costs for the facility.

Future Upgrades

In April 2022, the Ravens gained approval [[link removed]] from the Maryland state legislature for $600 million in bonding capacity for future upgrades at M&T Bank Stadium.

The legislature also approved $600 million for the Orioles, as well as $400 million for the Washington Commanders to upgrade infrastructure for FedEx Field. Minor-league baseball stadiums in the area received $200 million for future renovations.

The capital allocated toward the projects is contingent on new leases.

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More than $55 billion will be spent on global sports media rights next year, but for the most part, Gen Z won’t be watching live games. That’s a huge problem for leagues and their media partners, who need younger audiences to drive ratings growth going forward.

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Conversation Starters UFC president Dana White apologized for a physical altercation with his wife, but ESPN and Endeavor have been silent [[link removed]] since a video of the incident was published by TMZ on Monday. The NCAA has released [[link removed]] recommendations to modernize Division I sports that include strengthening health and safety guidelines — including a specific focus on concussions. ESPN’s coverage of Georgia-Ohio State in the Peach Bowl and TCU-Michigan in the Fiesta Bowl averaged [[link removed]] 21.7 million viewers on Saturday. Today's Action

NHL

10:08 PM

Islanders (-115) at Canucks (-105)

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NBA

07:00 PM

Thunder (0) at Magic (0)

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NHL

08:30 PM

Lightning (-365) at Blackhawks (+300)

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*All times are EST unless otherwise noted.

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

Question Of The Day

Do you try to be health conscious when selecting your alcoholic beverage?

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Monday’s Answer

64% of respondents would be interested in watching sports on a TV platform with fan loyalty programs.

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