PLL shines in Charlotte; Cricket draws on Long Island; the French Open's new home and NWSL expansion bids come due.
PLL shines in Charlotte; Cricket draws on Long Island; the French Open's new home and NWSL expansion bids come due.
One week to get your submissions in for SBJ's Best Places to Work. The deadline to submit your organization is June 18th. Go to sportsbusinessjournal.com for more. I'll be leading sessions with my colleague, Ben Portnoy, at NACDA in Las Vegas tomorrow, Tuesday. I'll be in Chicago for our Brand Innovation Summit that takes place Tuesday and Wednesday, I'll be there Wednesday. Hope to see you on the road this week.
And this is your Morning Buzzcast for Monday, June 10th. I made Mad Core. Wow, what a sports business weekend. A lot to cover. Let's get right into it. I took in my first Premier Lacrosse League event on Saturday night, here in Charlotte, and came away really impressed with the game presentation and the overall experience. Paul and Mike Rabil, the brothers behind the PLL, have a pretty interesting concept, and one can understand if this becomes a strong sports property in the future.
First, the audience on Saturday night, all families with their young children, and obviously a lot of young lacrosse players. The action, the pace, and action and game moves along swiftly. It's quicker and more physical than I thought. It was a beautiful evening at the American Legion Memorial Stadium, a real gem of a facility in Uptown Charlotte. And the Premier Lacrosse League had a four game schedule on Friday and Saturday that showcased its new home team, the Charlotte Chaos. Remember, the PLL has used a touring model since 2019 and, now, teams are geographically affiliated with a market. They'll move into their new cities next year. But for this year, they are still going market to market, a touring model still. But there's real promise in this league. And I could see interest growing, as the business model shifts to more franchise driven, and more and more of these young lacrosse players become adults and support the PLL.
Let's move on. We said this was going to be the month of cricket in the US. And this weekend saw one of the T20 Cricket World Cup's biggest events, as more than 34,000 fans packed into a temporary stadium, built in Long Island, to watch one of the most heavily hyped matches of the World Cup, India versus Pakistan. India came back to win the match, and Sunday's attendance of more than 34,000 was the largest in the United States for a cricket match. Not just the in-person attendance is significant, this match had serious global appeal. Viewership records are expected to be massive. The last time these two teams played, last fall, viewership reached nearly 400 million in India alone. For some context, The New York Times notes, this year's Super Bowl had 123 million viewers. And that nearly 400 million was, again, just in India. So the global audience of this match on Sunday could be closed to a billion viewers around the world. Remember, the T20 Cricket World Cup lasts all month, the whole month of June.
While in the SBJ office on Sunday, I have to admit, I watch pretty much every point of the four hour and 20 minute final between Alcaraz and Zarev. And my, oh my, what a final it was. Such great tennis, such shot making, such power, speed, intensity, pressure. As a tennis player, I loved it. It was also the last French Open final on NBC, at least for the foreseeable future. And it's been a great run by NBC. They've done the French Open well. Although, I thought they missed the trophy presentation yesterday and that perplexed me a little bit. But NBC Sports has had a great run at Roland Garros.
And, now, the rights will move over to Warner Bros. Discovery, which has made a deal with the French Open. And The Athletic reported over the weekend, it's a ten-year deal worth $650 million. They will begin coverage starting next year. It's quite a nice rights increase because NBC's current twelve-year deal averaged about $12 million per year. NBC shared its coverage with the Tennis Channel but, now, the rights go to Warner Bros. Discovery. And this comes as, of course, TNT could lose the NBA. But the French Open fits for the company, as TNT Sports already owns the European rights to the French Open through its Eurosport network. So, now, they will get into tennis domestically in the United States. And it seems that David Zaslav and Warner Bros. Discovery will continue to try and build up its sports portfolio, while knowing it could lose its main programming draw, the NBA.
I had a call on Friday morning, and it was with a source close to the PGA Tour and Saudi PIF negotiations. And they told me they believed that Friday's discussions, Friday's meeting, would be really productive, and would be the foundation leading to a deal. They said the talks would be very productive. And from the sounds of it, the source was on point, as the PGA Tour said its meetings with the PIF on Friday saw significant progress. The group met in New York. Rory McIlroy, who participated remotely, said the meeting lasted three hours. He called the meetings very productive, very constructive, very collaborative. He said talks are heading in the right direction and a lot of progress was made. Rory McIlroy has been hot and cold on these talks throughout the process, so it's rare to hear him sound so optimistic. And I do sense more positivity here that a deal could get done. And once it's done, you could see a lot of changes in the world of golf, again, once a deal is completed.
And while we're talking about the PGA Tour PIF negotiations, one article you have to read is the Financial Times profile of Fenway Sports Group owner, John Henry. It looks at how John Henry even became interested in investing in the PGA Tour. It was actually while sitting in an MLB owner's meeting in New York City, and hearing about the PGA Tour PIF merger. And he became intrigued about the concept. And the piece details the secret meetings that led to the Signature Sports Group, under Henry's leadership, investing in the PGA Tour. A really good read by the talented Sara Germano of the Financial Times.
And, yes, the Caitlin Clark Olympic team news dominated the weekend news cycle, but I still look at the attendance figures around Caitlin Clark. They continue to impress. She played in DC on Friday, and the game drew more than 20,000. It was the highest for any WNBA game since 2007, and it was the fifth highest for a regular season game in WNBA history. The game had a big event feel to it, and Clark delivered. She scored 30 points in a fever victory over the Mystics.
Let's shift to the NWSL because there were some big numbers in Chicago on Saturday, as the Chicago Red Stars lost to Bay FC. But they drew a record-breaking crowd of more than 35,000 at Wrigley Field. That broke the former league record of 34,000 for an NWSL match that was set in October of 2023 at Lumen Field for Megan Rapinoe's final regular season match.
So why is Saturday's number important? Well, one, it shows the efforts that the Red Stars are making under new ownership led by Laura Ricketts. And they are working hard to grow interest and fan base in the Red Stars. And this was also a test, meaning that Ricketts and her ownership group are lobbying the city of Chicago to consider a new soccer-only venue in downtown Chicago. They believe it could change the fortunes of the Red Stars and, yes, the fortunes of the city. So drawing more than 35,000 to Wrigley is something they will use as proof that the team can draw in Chicago. Because while the team played for years at Soldier Field, it now plays in SeatGeek Stadium in Bridgeview, where they've had challenges drawing fans. They want to be in the city of Chicago, and games like Saturday help their cause.
Meanwhile, my colleague, Alex Silverman, reported that bids for the NWSL's 16th franchise were due on Friday. The team is expected to be awarded in the fourth quarter of this year. It will begin play in the '26 season, along with the Boston-based franchise that was already awarded. Some markets that are interested, Cleveland, Denver, Minneapolis, Jacksonville. Also, FC Cincinnati's ownership group is expected to submit a bid. Other markets connected to MLS that could bid, Atlanta and St. Louis. So, again, look for the 16th team market to be announced in the fourth quarter of this year.
A couple of other quick hitters. I love how leagues are experimenting with new formats and events. The latest is the NHL and NHLPA. They will roll out their 4 Nations Face-Off tournament next February in place of an All-Star Game. They announced the dates and venues over the weekend, as games will be played in Montreal at the Bell Centre, and in Boston at TD Garden. Remember, this features players from the US, Canada, Finland, and Sweden, a round-robin tournament. The games will be on Disney, Turner, and Rogers. The championship game in Boston on ESPN in February. A new format, a new event for the NHL.
And, finally, an interesting move in soccer to just be aware of. Columbus crew president and general manager, Tim Bezbatchenko, one of the best team operators in MLS, is taking on a larger, global role, as he will work with Black Knight Football. That is the soccer operation owned by Vegas Golden Knights owner, Bill Foley. Black Knight Football includes a Premier League club, Bournemouth, and New Zealand based A-League Club, Auckland. Foley also has a team in the Scottish Premier League. So Bezbatchenko joined the crew in 2019. He was at Toronto FC before that. Incredibly knowledgeable, well-regarded, former Forty Under 40 honoree, great energy. And this job is of interest to him because, now, he can oversee three soccer clubs and build out Bill Foley's global soccer strategy. It's a big role. And he may be the first American to assume a leadership position on the player personnel side of major European clubs. It could be the start of a trend, you never know, but you could see why this would be appealing for Bezbatchenko, whose departure is certainly a big loss for the Columbus crew, and even Major League Soccer.
And so that is your Morning Buzzcast for Monday, June 10th, a very busy Monday. I will not be with you Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. The Buzzcast will be brought to you by my colleague, Ted Keith. I'll be back on Friday. Have a great week. Stay healthy, be good to each other. I'll speak to you down the road.