Add the National Hockey League to the roster of sports properties that are both licensors to and investors in the Fanatics licensed apparel juggernaut. Ownership sources said that the NHL Board of Governors authorized a $10 million equity investment at the end of last year.
Fanatics offered no comment, while an NHL spokeswoman did not return an email seeking comment.
The deal makes an already tight relationship that much cozier. After an extension of its NHL rights last season that takes them out to 2034, Fanatics has all NHL licensing rights in the sports specialty retail channel except for on-ice jerseys, which carry the Adidas brand, as of this season. Adding up Fanatics’ other equity investments, which include the NFL (the largest at around $95 million), NFLPA, MLB and MLS, sports properties have around $140 million invested in Fanatics.
Other Fanatics equity holders include Temasek Holdings, venture capital firms Andreessen Horowitz and Insight Venture Partners, private equity firm Silver Lake Partners and Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba, as well as SoftBank, which invested $1 billion in Fanatics last year, giving Fanatics a heady valuation of $4.5 billion.
Fanatics shows off its off its new NHL Center Ice line at the recent Licensing Show in Las Vegas.terry lefton / staff
RAMS SALES EFFORTS: Legends, assisted by the Los Angeles Rams and Chargers, was running a sales center for Stan Kroenke’s forthcoming stadium and mixed-use project in Inglewood for industry types and potential sponsors at a Minneapolis hotel during Super Bowl week.
Season tickets and PSLs will go on sale this year,, said Chris Hibbs, chief revenue officer for the Los Angeles Stadium & Entertainment District project.
Around 125 top-level suites have been on sale for four to five months, with the top-end ones 19 rows off the field. Prices reach $800,000 a year, which includes all events and amenities like food, beverage and fireplaces. Overall, suite sales are “way ahead of projections,” Hibbs said. There are 270 total suites in seven varieties, ranging from one that seats eight people to one that seats hundreds. Remaining inventory will go on sale later this year.
We’ve been hearing that the most inexpensive founding-level sponsorships start at $10 million and increase depending on category. Hibbs would not confirm pricing but noted that founding-level deals (around 10 of them) and a separate level of tech partnerships will include IP rights for the Rams and Chargers. Aside from naming rights (we’re hearing a $30 million ask there), features that could carry a corporate moniker include a separate 6,000-seat “performance venue,” along with a large plaza, 12 clubs and four VIP lobbies.
“The sell is to be part of something absolutely unique in a market as important as L.A,” Hibbs said. “And because we’re this massive mixed-used development as well, it can be a 365-day story, if you need it to be.”
Jacobus
COMINGS & GOINGS: Sports industry veteran Gary Jacobus is exiting the business after 26-plus years for a senior management role at SSP America, a food and beverage concessionaire with rights across many North American airports and a $3 billion parent company in Europe. Jacobus, head of business development at Aramark’s sports and entertainment division for the past five years, will be senior vice president of business development, and based in suburban New York City. Previous to Aramark, Jacobus worked at the NFL, NBA, USTA and IMG. … Three-time Forty Under 40 honoree Bob Cramer is exiting Coca-Cola after many years, most recently as vice president of sports marketing and partnership management. … We knew Consumer Products Director Don Brown was leaving the NFL after nearly 23 years; now we know where he’s going. Brown will join Long Island, N.Y., sports-centric branding, marketing and design agency Clutch Design Co. as vice president of business development this month. Clutch lists the New York Cosmos among its clients.
Terry Lefton can be reached at tlefton@sportsbusinessjournal.com.
