Sports Business

Linchpins of excess inflate NBA’s $4 bln deal

21 Dec 2022

The Phoenix Suns sale represents a giant 160% bounce on its valuation last year. Buyer Mat Ishbia is paying with a fortune built on U.S. mortgages and the SPAC craze. A rivalry with another billionaire adds ego to the bloated mix of sports, housing and financial engineering.

Qatar has got what it wanted from the World Cup

15 Dec 2022

The Gulf state has taken more flak than it would have done had it not staged the soccer tournament, which ends on Sunday. Yet in this Viewsroom podcast, Breakingviews columnists discuss how Qatar’s largely successful event also aids a strategy to make itself globally visible.

Adidas has sneaker each side of ESG turf war

15 Dec 2022

The $24 bln group is probing claims it ignored inappropriate behaviour by Kanye West. Adidas is big in both Europe and the U.S., where investors differ on the “E” of environmental, social and governance issues. It may soon discover how much they diverge on “S” ones, too.

Juventus drama calls for an Exor exit strategy

29 Nov 2022

Chair Andrea Agnelli and the rest of the soccer club’s board quit amid an accounting scandal. For top investor Exor, controlled by the Agnelli clan, it’s a chance to rethink long-held ties to the loss-making team. After a cleanup, a 2.3 bln euro price tag looks plausible.

Manchester United buyer will need love and money

23 Nov 2022

The Glazer family may sell the $2.5 bln soccer club after 17 years. It’s a good time to get out: valuations are rich and commercial revenue has held up well. A weak economy will challenge future growth, though. A new owner will have to be motivated by more than financial goals.

Liverpool could be a rare soccer M&A victory

8 Nov 2022

Club owners are often more interested in glory than profit. But Fenway Sports Group, which may sell the English team, could score a near 10 times uplift on its 300 mln pound purchase price. The timing is odd, but Liverpool may be an exception to the rule that soccer doesn’t pay.

HSBC and StanChart give Hong Kong sport trial run

4 Nov 2022

The Rugby Sevens, sponsored by the $103 bln lender led by Noel Quinn, is back, but as a shadow of its schmoozefest self. Meanwhile the bank Bill Winters sits atop is offering cash to encourage runners at the local marathon. Both show how the city faces a long slog back to normal.

Capital Calls: Chevron, Pickleball

29 Sep 2022

Concise views on global finance: The oil driller has sold its California headquarters building and is moving employees to Texas, while one of the fastest-growing U.S. games is beefing up its professional ambitions with an investment from basketball superstar LeBron James.

Disney’s big ESPN choice, Rio Tinto Mongolia drama

15 Sep 2022

Activist Dan Loeb backed away from his demand that the $203 bln media firm sell its sports network. In this Viewsroom podcast, Breakingviews columnists debate whether it’s the right move. And the $94 bln mining giant’s attempt to secure copper supply may need heavier machinery.

Peloton pack leader has clear road to accelerate

13 Sep 2022

Founder John Foley has exited the $3 bln exercise company, leaving an overhaul in the hands of CEO Barry McCarthy. The subscription business is showing sparks and Peloton is on the path to making cash – again. McCarthy may yet fail, but at least it will be on his terms.

Gloves come off in India’s digital content wars

5 Sep 2022

Disney bid $3 bln for ICC cricket rights then sub-licensed part of the package to rival Zee, raising the stakes for the latter to clear competition concern over its planned merger with Sony India. The surprise pincer move puts Mukesh Ambani’s Reliance on the backfoot.

Capital Calls: Lululemon stretches inventory logic

2 Sep 2022

Concise views on global finance: The $41 bln company raised annual profit and revenue forecasts, but is a little too relaxed about its growing stockpiles of yoga gear.

Elon Musk’s Man Utd joke masks serious M&A logic

17 Aug 2022

The world’s richest person was kidding when he said he would buy the $2 bln soccer club. Yet there’s money to be made for any buyer who, unlike the current owners, is willing to focus more on revenue growth and less on dividends. Rivals Liverpool and Man City offer a template.

Endeavor is a switch hitter in baseball deal

11 Aug 2022

The $11 bln firm known for representing movie stars is selling a baseball subsidiary because the players balked at potential land mines with agents. But the buyer is Silver Lake, an LBO firm that controls Endeavor. Problems just go from one side of the plate to the other.

Women’s soccer kicks off virtuous financial circle

1 Aug 2022

England’s “Lionesses” won the European Championship in front of 87,000 fans with millions watching at home. That suggests public interest not far off the men’s game. If soccer follows tennis in closing the gender revenue gap, there will be big bucks for players – and for clubs.

China’s great outdoors opens up for business

19 Jul 2022

Tired of lockdowns and wary of Covid contagion, citizens are embracing camping, glamping and recreational vehicles. For now, the market is tiny compared to the $700 bln U.S. industry. It’s a great opportunity for foreign brands to pitch their tents in a fast-growing luxury space.

LIV Golf finds that Saudi money can’t buy love

23 Jun 2022

The rebel league is Riyadh’s latest PR pitch to the global business crowd. Fairways lined with gold have managed to hook a handful of names. But a lack of major broadcast deals and top drawcards like Tiger Woods or Rory McIlroy means LIV is likely to miss the financial cut.

Capital Calls: SoftBank Arm-twisting

22 Jun 2022

Concise views on global finance: The UK government may be eyeing desperate measures to keep SoftBank-owned chip group Arm's IPO in London.

Indian cricket, Brexit breakdown, BlackRock voting

16 Jun 2022

Disney took half the viewing rights to the country’s top sport league which fetched $6.2 bln. In this Viewsroom podcast, Breakingviews columnists debate who won. They also discuss Boris Johnson's plan to rip up his EU exit deal and BlackRock’s efforts to distribute voting rights.

Reliance’s digital cricket deal puts TV to a test

14 Jun 2022

Mukesh Ambani’s Indian media empire will use the premier league’s streaming rights, won for $3 bln, to aggressively ramp up his streaming service. Success will come at the expense of former owner Disney. A fiddly ownership structure limits the tycoon’s financial pain too.