Tag: Sports Business Journal

Notre Dame mentioned in contracts for upcoming Big Ten TV deal

It’s great to be so unique.

Imagine being such an independent force in the college football realm that TV contracts specifically mention you and no one else. That’s what’s happening to Notre Dame with the new Big Ten TV contract according to Sports Business Journal. If the Irish join the conference at any point during the life of the deal, NBC, Fox and CBS all will have to pay a little extra. We don’t exactly how much more they would have to pony up, but the language exists in the contract.

That said, we still have no idea if the Irish ultimately will join the conference that repeatedly scorned them before most of us were alive. For now, independence remains a badge of honor for the program, and nothing indicates that that will be going away anytime soon. That means the Big Ten will just have to be happy with the money it currently stands to collect.

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Big Ten closing in on $1 billion media rights deal

It would be the first deal of its kind in college sports!

On Monday night John Ourand of Sports Business Journal published a story entitled “Big Ten talks in the home stretch.” It reports that following the expiration of the current media rights deal in 2023, the Big Ten Conference’s football and basketball games will not air on ESPN for the first time in 40 years. Instead, CBS, FOX Sports, and NBC appear to be the leaders regarding a new media deal with the conference. The article further states,

Fox agreed to the “A” package months ago. As part of its deal, it will carry a football game on the broadcast network at noon ET, plus football games on its cable channels FS1 and BTN, in which it holds a 60% stake.

The deals with CBS and NBC are not yet complete, but Ourand reports that the “B” package would be divided between networks. CBS would receive the rights for the 2:30 pm central time kickoffs, while NBC and its streaming service Peacock would carry primetime broadcasts. It’s also reported that,

The Big Ten is expected to be the first college conference to eclipse $1 billion per year in rights fees once all is said and done.

Ourand notes that while ESPN is not officially out of the running, they would need help from parent company Disney to increase their bid. The report further states that Disney CEO Bob Chapek graduated from Michigan State and may have a personal interest in keeping the Big Ten part of the Walt Disney Company family. That combined with the fact that Disney’s broadcast network ABC has produced Big Ten games since 1966 and ESPN has had a relationship with the league since 1982. That history could see the “House of Mouse” increase its bid in the next couple of days.

The current media rights deal for the league will expire in 2023. Of course, anything can change, but it appears that the Big Ten will be working with new broadcast partners in the foreseeable future.

Scroll below to view social media reactions to the first-of-its-kind collegiate broadcasting deal.

Sports Business Journal names Warriors ‘Franchise of the Decade’

After 10-years of success, the Golden State Warriors were named “Franchise of the Decade” by the Sports Business Journal.

While the Golden State Warriors are struggling to cap off 2019, the organization owned the 2010 decade. Five consecutive NBA Final appearances, three championships, and one new arena all within 10-years earned Golden State the title of “Franchise of the Year” by the Sports Business Journal.

Joe Lacob and Peter Gruber’s group purchased the Warriors in 2010 and turned Golden State from lovable losers to perineal contenders. While the Warriors set a championship pace on the court, the Sports Business Journal praised what the Warriors were able to do off the court.

The brand new, privately funded, $1.4 billion arena known as Chase Center was the crown jewel to end the Warriors’ dominant decade. No other modern sports arena was privately financed and built on private property.

Located in the heart of Silicon Valley, the Golden State Warriors were touted for their technological innovation. Inclusion of social media, mobile pay and a new gigantic LED scoreboard were all steps towards a modern basketball watching experience at Chase Center.

The Warriors have led the NBA in revenue over the past three seasons and their new location in San Francisco’s Mission Bay, the money is expected to keep flowing into Golden State.

Having a bevy of All-Stars across your rosters like Stephen Curry, Kevin Durant, Klay Thompson and Draymond Green help attract honors like “Franchise of the Decade.” Still, the Warriors ownership group and President Rick Welts deserve credit with this award.

The Warriors President and Chief Operating Officer, Welts called the award “Humbling,” in a Tweet celebrating the honor.

Golden State was named “Team of the Year” by the Sports Business Journal in 2014 and 2016; they were also finalists for the award five times during the decade.

Although the team only has five wins through the first quarter of the 2019-20 season, the Golden State Warriors are still as big of a name brand as there is in the NBA. Their next challenge will be to parlay the success of the recent past into the start of the 2020-21 season.