The days of only being able to watch sports on network and cable TV are over.

Google and Amazon each have exclusive NFL rights, Apple TV+ has every MLS match for the next 10 years, and the NBA will likely get a multibillion-dollar haul from a streamer in its next media rights negotiations.

As one of the last bastions of appointment viewing, live sports have a built-in, diehard audience advertisers can count on.

Live-streaming ad tech firm Transmit is at the forefront of this shift, and now they have one of the world’s biggest financial institutions backing them.

An investor group led by a fund managed by LionTree, in partnership with existing Transmit investor SC Holdings, has made a majority growth investment in the company, valuing it at $350 million, according to the Wall Street Journal.

Transmit — which counts Paramount, Univision, YES Network and the NHL among its customers and has worked with Comcast, Nike, and AT&T to leverage live sports — will use the funds to enhance its tech and expand globally. 

Everyone’s Adding Ads

Streaming’s heavy hitters are finally embracing ads.

In 2022, Disney+ introduced an ad-supported tier, plus a bundle with ESPN+ and Hulu with ads. It also collected a record $9 billion in upfront ad purchases, with 40% of that sum going to streaming and digital advertising.

• In November, Netflix debuted an ad-supported tier for $6.99.
• Peacock has had an ad-supported option since the service launched in 2020.
• Paramount+ and HBO Max offer ad-supported tiers, as well. 

The Transmit deal marks another major sports-adjacent investment for LionTree.

In December, the bank participated in a $700 million round for Fanatics that valued the digital sports platform and retail heavyweight at $31 billion.

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

Brazil’s new league wants to compete with the English Premier League.

Two consortiums are vying to create a new domestic competition — inspired by the Premier League — in an effort to capitalize on the sport’s commercial potential and keep talent in Brazil longer. Many players currently go elsewhere for more money and better competition.

One key difference: Brazil’s competition will be controlled by clubs instead of the national federation.

“Our vision is that in 10 years we can reach the French league in terms of overall revenues,” said Lawrence Magrath, co-founder of Codajas Sports Kapital. 

• Codajas’ Liga do Futebol Brasileiro project has support from 16 clubs in the country’s top two divisions.
• It is reportedly in exclusive talks with Mubadala Capital over a $890 million injection for a 20% stake.

“We firmly believe that in 20 years we can be the second-biggest league in the world, only after the [English] Premier League,” Magrath said. “We have the raw materials and a time zone that’s consumer-friendly globally for transmissions.”

Project Proposals

A breakaway project called Liga Forte Futebol — formed after disagreements over how to split broadcast receipts — has support from 26 clubs and is in discussions with a group of unnamed U.S. investors.

Discussions with Brazil’s main broadcaster Globo are expected to start this year for contracts beginning in 2025.

“The objective is to have all 40 clubs from Serie A and B within a single proposal,” one source told the Financial Times. “The tendency now is to negotiate a merger.”

As the crypto market continues to lay in shambles, there’s been yet another shakeup. 

Fanatics plans to divest its 60% stake in Candy Digital, an NFT company with which it created virtual trading cards, according to a CNBC report. It will sell to an investor group including the original other founding shareholder.

“Over the past year, it has become clear that NFTs are unlikely to be sustainable or profitable as a standalone business,” Fanatics founder Michael Rubin reportedly wrote in an internal email.

• Only about 18 months old, Candy Digital came onto the NFT scene strong.
• Co-founded by Fanatics, it boasted deals with MLB, NASCAR, WWE, and others. The company was valued at $1.5 billion in October 2021 after a $500 million Series A funding round.
• But by November 2022, the company laid off 100 employees — a third of its workforce.

Now, Fanatics is distancing itself from the NFT market altogether. 

Future Outlook

In the email, Rubin wrote: “Aside from physical collectibles (trading cards) driving 99% of the business, we believe digital products will have more value and utility when connected to physical collectibles to create the best experience for collectors.”

The company has plenty of options for physical collectibles after acquiring Topps last January.

It may be a while before the Ottawa Senators have a new owner.

Galatioto Sports Partners won’t be ready to open the due diligence website — where potential buyers can look at the club’s financials — for likely two more weeks, according to the Ottawa Sun.

The NHL was initially hoping to know the potential new owner by mid-January but reportedly wants to make sure everyone is vetted prior to the website’s launch. 

• Potential bidders will have access to financials, including revenue from corporate deals and ticket sales.
• They will be able to see the debt the current owner’s estate is holding against the club.
• The team’s memorandum of understanding will also be available. 

Last month, NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said more than a dozen parties were interested in looking at the books.

Forbes valued the Senators at $800 million in December, a 52% year-over-year increase.

Sale Sign

The team’s late owner Eugene Melnyk purchased the team for $92 million in 2003 to save it from bankruptcy. He died in March, leaving the team to his daughters, Anna and Olivia, who are both younger than 25.

The team was put up for sale in November. 

The Ottawa Sun reported the new owner may not be known before March. It was reported in November that Ryan Reynolds is “very interested” in buying the team.