SBJ Unpacks: NFL Pushes Back On Super Bowl Capacity Report

Tonight in SBJ Unpacks: The NFL pushes back on an ESPN report saying the league will cap Super Bowl LV attendance at 20%.

• NBA eyes MLB-style series for upcoming season
• Sale of Jazz a surprise in financial circles
• MLB ready to investigate Justin Turner situation
• Athletes Unlimited CEO on unique league model
• Why spatial distancing is here to stay for live events
• ICYMI: WNBPA President Nneka Ogwumike on lessons from the bubble
  
  

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NFL: SUPER BOWL CAPACITY STILL TBD

• The NFL has not made any final decisions about capacity at Super Bowl LV in Tampa, a spokesperson told SBJ's Ben Fischer, pushing back on an ESPN report this afternoon that said attendance will be capped at 20% at Raymond James Stadium.
  
  
• NFL VP/Communications Brian McCarthy said there is “no set capacity figure at this time as we continue to monitor the ongoing pandemic with more than three months to go.” McCarthy said 20% is a possible outcome of ongoing discussions, but it’s far from certain.
  
  
• “There have been 19 teams that have already or have been authorized by public authorities to host regular-season games,” McCarthy said. “The average has been around 20% with fans seated in pods and everyone wearing face coverings. Among the scenarios we are exploring is a capacity of around that figure. But we anticipate it could grow as we get closer to the game.”
  
  
• In late September, SBJ reported that contingency plans of 16,000 fans (24.6%), or 30,000 fans (or 46%) had been raised with various partners. But since then, COVID caseloads have surged nationally. 
  
  
• The ESPN report triggered a round of phone calls and text messages this afternoon within NFL sponsorship and ticketing industry circles, as there had not been any recent communication from the league about Super Bowl tickets.   

NFL SEEKING MORE POWER TO REGULATE OWNERSHIP STRUCTURES

• In a bid to compel better team succession planning, the NFL is seeking owners’ approval to dramatically increase penalties for teams that don’t comply with league rules about ownership structures. The measure, first debated at the Oct. 12-13 league meeting, reflects a growing concern that the league has insufficient power to enforce requirements that a single person have at least 30% equity and autonomy on all team matters.
  
  
• This debate comes as five longtime controlling owners have passed away in the last three years, in some cases generating difficult legal battles. League insiders expect more teams to transfer to younger generations or new owners in the coming decade. Stricter enforcement of the controlling ownership rules would not necessarily prevent family disputes, but would act as a cudgel to force owners and their families to develop clear plans and address problems promptly.
  
  
• SBJ's Ben Fischer has the full story here.

SOURCES: NBA EYES MLB-STYLE SERIES FOR UPCOMING SEASON

• The NBA "held a call this afternoon with team GMs & presidents to detail the plan for a 72-game season set to begin December 22 & end before the Olympics in July," per The Ringer's Kevin O'Connor. The league "intends to schedule games in a way that reduces travel by 25% with teams playing MLB-style series."
  
  
• O'Connor's report came after a substantial faction of "star players" were "pushing" for the 2020-2021 season to start on Jan. 18 -- MLK Day -- with a free-agency commencement of Dec. 1., according to sources cited by Yahoo Sports' Chris Haynes. NBPA Executive Director Michele Roberts earlier today said she did not know "what I think yet" about the NBA's potential plan for a December start to the season. Roberts told USA Today, "I don’t know how much rest guys just left the bubble need before they restart. I also don’t know how much runway everybody needs in order to get into camp."
  
  

• Meanwhile, the NBA's revenues "dropped 10% to $8.3 billion for the 2019-20 season amid losses due to the pandemic," per ESPN. Sources said that the balance of the finances included an $800 million "loss in gate receipts" and a $400 million "loss in sponsorships and merchandise."

SALE OF JAZZ A SURPRISE IN FINANCE CIRCLES

• Numerous sports finance sources told SBJ's John Lombardo & Chris Smith they were surprised by today’s news that the Miller family has sold the Jazz to Qualtrics co-Founder Ryan Smith. A source confirmed the reported sale price of $1.66 billion, and multiple people said that figure reflects no COVID-related discount. Sources could not say why the Millers chose to sell the Jazz, which was put into a legacy trust in 2017 to keep the team in Utah long-term. Read more from Lombardo & Smith here.
  
  
• Contributors on ESPN's "The Jump" this afternoon said they expect the ownership transition to fundamentally change how the Jazz does business. ESPN's Nick Friedell: "Everybody is used to Utah doing things a certain way with that organization. … When you spend $1.6 billion for a team, you better be willing to spend a lot more than that moving forward." Richard Jefferson, who played one season for the Jazz under the Millers, said: "This is a family organization. There are people that have been in the organization for years. So there’s going to be a shift." 

MANFRED: JUSTIN TURNER "WRONG" FOR RETURNING TO FIELD

• MLB and Commissioner Rob Manfred issued a statement on Justin Turner returning to the field after World Series Game 6 following his positive COVID-19 test result, saying the Dodgers 3B "chose to disregard the agreed-upon joint protocols and the instructions he was given regarding the safety and protection of others."
  
  
• It reads in part, "Turner was placed into isolation for the safety of those around him. ... Turner’s decision to leave isolation and enter the field was wrong and put everyone he came in contact with at risk. ... The Commissioner’s Office is beginning a full investigation into this matter and will consult with the Players Association." 

T-MOBILE TOPS BRAND ADVERTISER SPEND DURING WORLD SERIES

• SBJ's David Broughton crunched the numbers from iSpot.tv on the top brand advertisers during the World Series, with T-Mobile leading the way at $12.8 million.

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ATHLETES UNLIMITED'S PATRICOF BREAKS DOWN UNIQUE LEAGUE MODEL

• Athletes Unlimited co-Founder & CEO Jon Patricof today identified key insights that led to the outfit’s league model, in which athletes compete in games that place an emphasis on individual performances. He told SBJ’s Andrew Levin, “When we were thinking about how to create a network of leagues for the future and for where fans are -- (there) was this idea that we should really focus around the individual athlete rather than a fixed team.”
  
  
• Patricof explained, “Certainly, there are legacy teams that have tremendous equity and have been around hundreds of years. But if you’re starting up a new property … where there’s not as much of an established brand equity in teams, for us, it was like, ‘How do we make a league totally centered around the athletes?’”
  
  
• Another key difference between Athletes Unlimited and the traditional league model: no team owners. “The league structure is totally different than anything that exists,” Patricof said. “The athletes share in 50% of the profits of the league and you share in those profits not just in the current season but for 19 years into the future as well. Athletes are also involved in governance and decision making at all levels.”
  
  
• For more from Patricof, check out today’s episode of “SBJ Unpacks: The Road Ahead" podcast.

OUTSIDE CONTRIBUTORS: ANTICIPATING THE NEXT ERA OF LIVE EVENTS

• Tonight's op-ed contribution is from Minneapolis-based Staging Concepts Director of Sales & Marketing Cindy Albrecht, who writes under the header, "Staging And Spatial Planning In A New Era Of Live Events."
  
  
• Albrecht: "Due to the heavy impact of COVID-19 on the live events industry, spatial distancing will likely play a major role in how people attend sports competitions, live professional sports games and other sporting events in the coming months and years. In fact, it is quite possible that the pandemic will permanently alter the way we congregate and utilize public spaces and fundamentally reshape future design planning."
  
  
• To read the full contribution, click here.

IN CASE YOU MISSED IT

• WNBPA President Nneka Ogwumike and Wasserman's Lindsay Kagawa Colas discuss with journalist Kate Fagan what lessons were learned after the WNBA's bubble season at the SBJ Game Changers virtual event. 
  
  
• Meanwhile, during this crisis impacting the sports business, we want everyone to be up-to-date on the latest news and information. Today's Sports Business Daily section from the Game Changers conference is free, outside the paywall, for the foreseeable future. Below are the headlines.
  
  
  • Leagues Look To Continue Social Justice Efforts Into '21
  • Execs Look At Company-Supported Efforts To Grow Female Leadership
  • World Athletics President Argues For Top-Down Gender Reform In Sports

SPEED READS 

• Versus Programming Network (VSPN), a key player in China's esports solutions market, has raised close to $100 million in a Series B financing round led by Tencent and intends to use the proceeds to improve its esports products, continue building a diverse esports ecosystem and increase its reach, reports TEO's Tobias Seck. Investment management firm Tiantu Capital, trading firm Susquehanna Int'l Group and video-sharing app developer Kuaishou also participated in the investment round. For more, see today's issue of SBJ Esports.
  
  
• After originally targeting a Dec. 4 start date for the 2020-21 season, the American Hockey League has moved the date again, per SBJ’s Mark J. Burns. The AHL’s Board of Governors approved a new “anticipated start date” for Feb. 5, 2021 “due to the ongoing COVID-19 public health crisis.” Currently, the NHL’s target start date for the upcoming campaign remains as early as Jan. 1.
  
  
• Boston-based WHOOP, which makes wearable fitness tech, closed a $100 million Series E financing at a $1.2 billion valuation led by IVP, reports SBJ's Eric Prisbell. Participating investors include SoftBank Vision Fund 2, Accomplice, Two Sigma Ventures, Collaborative Fund, Thursday Ventures, Nextview Ventures, Promus Ventures, Cavu Ventures and D20 Capital. Pro athletes investing include Patrick Mahomes, Kevin Durant (via ThirtyFive Ventures), Larry Fitzgerald, Eli Manning, Rory McIlroy and Justin Thomas.
  
  
• NBC will air U.S. Figure Skating's Las Vegas International event on Nov. 15th on NBC, reports SBJ’s Chris Smith. The team competition will feature 12 skaters, with teams captained by broadcasters Tara Lipinski and Johnny Weir, and fill the broadcast window originally planned for the canceled ISU Grand Prix stop in France. U.S. Figure Skating sponsor HomeLight will entitle the event and fund a $50,000 prize pool.

• Check out the most recent editions of our SBJ Unpacks podcasts:
  
  
  • Athletes Unlimited's Jon Patricof on the outfit’s inaugural softball season, plus the impacts and implications of its new league model.
    
    
  • T-Mobile VP Mike Belcher on the mobile carrier’s activation around the World Series.
    
    
  • NHL Chief Business Officer Keith Wachtel discusses the league’s participation in the American Gaming Association’s responsible gaming campaign..

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