February 9, 2023

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Those who spent a small fortune [[link removed]] to see LeBron James break the NBA’s all-time scoring record on Tuesday were ultimately vindicated, but spare a thought for those who bet on Thursday’s game to make history. The get-in price for that game — $796 before LeBron broke the record — dropped an astonishing 87% by Wednesday to $100.

Media Disney Has No Plans to Spin Off ESPN [[link removed]]

LOC

Disney CEO Bob Iger said there were no plans to spin off ESPN despite calls from activist investors.

“ESPN is a differentiator for this company,” said Iger. “It is going through some obviously challenging times because of what’s happened in linear programming. But the brand of ESPN is very healthy, and the programming of ESPN is very healthy.”

The Mouse House saw revenues hit [[link removed]] $23.5 billion for the three-month period ending Dec. 31, up 8% year-over-year.

The company’s media and entertainment wing held steady at $14.8 billion in revenue, up 1% from last year. The company spent less on NFL and College Football Playoff rights, but saw sports production costs tick upward. Disney is expected to compete for NBA media rights in the league’s next set of deals. Its parks segment brought huge growth coming out of the pandemic, hitting $8.7 billion, up 21% from $7.2 billion the previous year.

Disney beat overall revenue expectations, and its stock was up 6.3% in early after-hours trading.

ESPN+ Plus

Disney saw its linear networks slip 5% to $7.3 billion in revenue, with operating income falling $244 million to $1.3 billion. Streaming revenue rose 13% to $5.3 billion, but losses climbed to just over $1 billion.

ESPN+ ticked up to 24.9 million subscribers from 24.3 million the previous quarter and saw a 14% jump in monthly revenue per subscriber in that time to $5.53.

Disney sold [[link removed]] out its ad inventory for the NHL All-Star Weekend earlier this month. The NHL returned to Disney after the two sides linked up on a seven-year deal in 2021.

Leagues Goodell Confirms Flex Scheduling for ‘Monday Night Football’ [[link removed]]

Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

NFL commissioner Roger Goodell told reporters at his Super Bowl press conference in Phoenix that ESPN’s “Monday Night Football” will be able to utilize flex scheduling next season — and that Amazon may eventually have the same ability.

“It wouldn’t at all surprise me at some point that we have it on Thursdays at some stage, but not today,” Goodell said on Wednesday. “It will certainly be something that’ll be on our horizon.”

Goodell said Amazon’s first season as the exclusive home of Thursday night games worked “exactly [as the league] anticipated,” because — despite a smaller audience — it was around 10 years younger. YouTube TV, which recently secured [[link removed]] the NFL Sunday Ticket, “will change the experience” of subscribers to the out-of-market package held by DirecTV since 1994. Discussions around the potential sale of part of NFL Media haven’t led to a deal, but Goodell said the league “absolutely” will continue to explore its options.

Goodell didn’t provide details on how flex scheduling will be rolled out for “Monday Night Football.” NBC could flex games to Sunday night for several seasons.

Diversity Update

Goodell touted [[link removed]] the NFL’s incubator programs to address the lack of diversity in coaching and front-office execs, saying there’s been meaningful progress over the last year.

“I still feel like there’s better work and more work ahead of us,” Goodell said. “I think that there’s been progress, and we’re pleased to see progress, but it’s never enough.”

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Teams Full Takeover Bid for Manchester United Expected Within Days [[link removed]]

MUFC

Manchester United can reportedly expect a full takeover bid from Qatari investors in the coming days.

The money will reportedly [[link removed]] come from individual investors, as the group is separate from Qatar Sports Investments, which was reported [[link removed]] last month to be considering a full or partial takeover.

QSI already owns Paris Saint-Germain, and European soccer governing body UEFA has strict rules against owning multiple clubs. The group set to bid is only interested in a full takeover.

A full takeover wouldn’t be cheap, as the Glazer family — who purchased [[link removed].] Manchester United in 2005 for roughly $942 million — is reportedly [[link removed]] looking for at least $7.2 billion. Forbes last valued the club at $4.6 billion.

“There are significant funds available,” according to a Daily Mail report. “These people are serious. They want to make sure that United are where they should be, and they are confident theirs will be the strongest bid.”

Qatar’s Competition

Billionaire Jim Ratcliffe — one of Britain’s richest people and a longtime Manchester United fan — and his chemical company INEOS were the first to announce they had entered the process for a club takeover.

The sale has reportedly intrigued groups from the Middle East, Asia, and the U.S., as well.

Any takeover would need approval from the Premier League.

Leagues Seattle Storm WNBA’s Most Valuable Team After Investment [[link removed]]

Stephen Brashear-USA TODAY Sports

Business interest in WNBA teams is on the rise.

The Seattle Storm now have the highest valuation of any team in the WNBA after selling minority stakes to 15 investors, valuing the club at $151 million, according [[link removed]] to The Wall Street Journal — 15 times more than other teams.

Force 10 Hoops LLC, a company run by three women in the Seattle area, is still the controlling owner of the team. The team will see major benefits from the sale — the Storm plan to build a 50,000-square-foot practice facility with offices worth $64 million.

Less than 200 miles away, the city of Portland is making a bid for a WNBA expansion team.

Both the Portland Thorns and the Trail Blazers are involved, as well as coaches from Oregon and Oregon State and Sen. Ron Wyden.

When it comes to expansion, WNBA commissioner Cathy Engelbert said the league is shooting [[link removed]] for 2025. Toronto, Nashville, and the Bay Area — both Oakland and San Francisco — are contenders, while Columbia, South Carolina, and Philadelphia have also been mentioned.

Aces Investigation

Meanwhile, the league office is investigating the Las Vegas Aces for “circumventing the salary cap,” according [[link removed]] to The Next Hoops.

The team allegedly tried to offer a player a sponsorship deal in addition to a salary, which is a violation of the collective bargaining agreement.

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How NIL is Impacting College Education in Sports

Since the NCAA passed its landmark ruling in July 2021 allowing college athletes to profit off their Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) the impact has been great and far reaching.

One area within this new frontier that has not been widely discussed, however, is how universities are creating opportunities within the classroom to learn more about NIL.

In our latest webinar, Owen Poindexter (Front Office Sports) sits down with professors Thilo Kunkel and Amy Giddings (Temple University), along with recent graduate and current NIL Agent, Matt Lupi, to discuss The NIL Effect: Inside & Outside the Classroom.

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Conversation Starters From the wildest passes and the biggest dunks to the final serve, Atmosphere Sports is streaming sports back to the center with live scores, highlights, and more. Learn more [[link removed]].* Wendy’s is making mornings sweeter with their new Homestyle French Toast Sticks. They’re perfectly crispy, perfectly golden brown, and available every day until 10:30 a.m. Order now [[link removed]] and start your day the right way.* Michael Irvin has been pulled [[link removed]] from his NFL Network duties for Super Bowl week after a woman reported a complaint against the Hall of Fame wide receiver. Nike founder Phil Knight was one of the only attendees who didn’t use his phone while witnessing [[link removed]] LeBron James’ historic shot on Tuesday. Front Office Sports Today They Said What?

Gary A. Vasquez-USA TODAY Sports

“LeBron’s career is one of someone who planned to dominate this game. He got out of high school, he had the size and talent to step right into the NBA, and he immediately started to have his effect. And it’s gone for almost 20 years now.”

— Six-time NBA MVP Kareem Abdul-Jabbar on LeBron James becoming the league’s all-time leading scorer — breaking Abdul-Jabbar’s 39-year-old record — on the latest episode of Front Office Sports Today.

Listen and subscribe on Apple [[link removed]], Google [[link removed]], and Spotify [[link removed]].

Today's Action

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Question Of The Day

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Wednesday’s Answer

58% of respondents listen to country music.

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