BCS leagues expanding - yeah?

Probably selling part or all of any future revenue streams, like a toll bridge going private or something.

 

That would be seeking investments from institutional investors (think mutual funds, pension funds, etc.) ...

 

Thanks, doc. I know the Sportico audience might differ from the ESPN audience, for example, but I still think it might have been nice if the story had defined the term.

 

Probably means FSU gets a bunch of cash ("raise capital") from investment funds. Said funds then have their fingers in future FSU revenue streams.

 

I'd rather have Bobby Lowder on my BoT than have to deal with venture capitalists.

 

College football seems like its headed for a financial meltdown, seriously. The programs have already spent and or promised the money from the TV deals they've signed. The Pac-12 found out the hard way that TV money isn't limitless. The sport went to the CFP only because they needed to find a way to find more cash. Then NIL hit. There is a finite amount of interest in the sport - I don't see another big payday that these schools can dream up.

 

The fallout of the regional sports network implosion might be the canary in the coal mine moment for every sports organization not named the NFL. While demand for live sports is still high, the cable subscription model is going tits up and the networks have a limited amount of viewing options for an increasingly fragmented audience. Events are only profitable when advertisers can get return on investment by having a big enough audience share to make it pay.

ESPN's linear reach is down to just over 70 million homes out of a potential 120 million, according to Nielsen. That's down from 100 million in 2011 and accelerating rapidly. ESPN+, which has a huge advantage of being bundled with Disney+ and Hulu -- the best-case scenario for direct-to-consumer subscriptions -- has flat-lined, if not begun to shed subscribers. Bob Iger's keeping a brave face but he knows the halcyon cable days are over.

Even if you consider the likes YouTube and Apple TV trying to siphon off viewers, how does NASCAR, for example, continue to demand premium value for a product that's lost as much as half of its television audience since the last media deal? A November story in Front Office Sports suggested NASCAR was looking for as much as 15 percent more -- close to $1 billion a year -- when the contract with Fox and NBC expires next year. But even the senior VP of media admits that will require a hefty chunk of content on some sort of exclusive streaming service.

But like the Pac-12 presidents concluded, relying on that kind of future revenue is risky. One, how do you hope to reach the same viewership? Two, how many potential viewers do you need to break even? Three, how do you provide enough value to avoid huge churn? NASCAR knows how to run stock car races. Hiring people to run a successful media platform is a different story. Just one look at the hot mess of trying to navigate NASCAR.com shows they still don't get it.

And none of this even considers the possibility of recession because of the Fed's monkeying with the prime.

The reality is going to hit hard when sports organizations, thinking they're all going to get NFL or Big XII-like revenue boosts, get low-balled or no offers at all.

 

I expect the NBA to sign deals with at least five outlets to make the number they are looking for - similar to what the NFL has done. Keep cutting the package up into smaller pieces.

 

You can look in the stands during a NASCAR telecast and see the sport shrinking before your eyes. The same thing could happen to college football. I saw it happen to BC with my own eyes. Once they left their natural rivals int he Big East, interest left as well. Who the hell in LA is gonna pay to get Peacock to see a Saturday night, no, dinnertime game of UCLA at Purdue? Nobody. We've already seen how some schools want more than their equal share of conference revenues. That's the next step. The step after that involves the Dept. of Justice and anti-trust laws, with 80 schools suing 20 others.

 

I remain baffled at the breathless speculation.
Is today the day that FSU leaves the ACC? No? OK. They're staying. For another year, at least.
I might be really wrong here, but I'm not getting it.
A brief look at a few things suggests that any organization or entity that wants to net ~ $40 million a year from private equity would need to risk/invest hundreds of millions a year. Private equity's annual average return is allegedly 10.48%. The standard management fee is 2% per year. After the investor has recouped its initial investment, the 20% performance fee kicks in. Or so I have read.
FSU's total institutional endowment as of March 2023 was $953 million. So they can't throw half of that into risky investment. Where does the money come from?

 

13th regular season game. Won’t be the cure all they’re hoping for, but they’ll gladly go for the quick fix.

 

I'm afraid before long all sports will be inaccessible to most folks in terms of expense.
Major pro sports and auto racing have been trending that way for years. I don't even have kids, but I know if you take a family to an event, it will cost you a mortgage paymet.
Fine. We can just watch on TV. Nope. Not anymore. Subscribe to a half dozen different packages. Pay if you want to watch.
College football is not too far behind. It already costs you an arm and a leg. Now easily watching on TV might not happen.

Go to DII football games and minor league baseball games if you are a true fan of the sports and don't need a production around them.