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B1G working on $2B Private Equity deal
Posted on 10/2/25 at 8:57 am
Posted on 10/2/25 at 8:57 am
Per Wetzel and Thamel at ESPN:
I'm trying to figure out how this would work from the PE perspective. Are they paying the $ now in return for future merchandising and broadcasting rights? If so, the B1G might make a big splash now only to regret it 10 years in. PE is in the business of getting a return. That return only happens if they buy low and sell high, to grossly oversimplify things. From PE's perspective, if this deal happens, they are buying low and trading present value for future value, which implies both growth and maximization of revenues/profit. Somebody gonna loose in that situation.
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If tweet fails to load, click here. I'm trying to figure out how this would work from the PE perspective. Are they paying the $ now in return for future merchandising and broadcasting rights? If so, the B1G might make a big splash now only to regret it 10 years in. PE is in the business of getting a return. That return only happens if they buy low and sell high, to grossly oversimplify things. From PE's perspective, if this deal happens, they are buying low and trading present value for future value, which implies both growth and maximization of revenues/profit. Somebody gonna loose in that situation.
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Posted on 10/2/25 at 9:02 am to TigerHornII
quote:
the B1G might make a big splash now only to regret it 10 years in.
Exactly this. I hope the SEC stays away from this garbage.
Posted on 10/2/25 at 9:12 am to TigerHornII
B1G leadership knows CFB is cooked after the boomers die out. Getting it while they can.
Posted on 10/2/25 at 9:24 am to TigerHornII
The BIG has made moves that on the surface look like immediate wins. But within a decade you’re going to see major issues start popping up.
The biggest one is being “coast to coast”. The travel costs and wear and tear on the smaller programs is going to be the first thing that causes some schools to consider leaving. I think a school like Rutgers or Northwestern will willingly back out at some point or have major cuts to smaller programs which will get them kicked out.
The biggest one is being “coast to coast”. The travel costs and wear and tear on the smaller programs is going to be the first thing that causes some schools to consider leaving. I think a school like Rutgers or Northwestern will willingly back out at some point or have major cuts to smaller programs which will get them kicked out.
Posted on 10/2/25 at 9:28 am to Henry Jones Jr
All these lefty schools burn a ton of fossil fuels to play regular season games.....
Posted on 10/2/25 at 9:34 am to lewis and herschel
Didn't Georgia vote for Biden?
This post was edited on 10/2/25 at 9:38 am
Posted on 10/2/25 at 9:36 am to TigerHornII
Rutgers vs Nebraska brought to you with limited commercial interruption by the Saudi Foundation.
Posted on 10/2/25 at 9:37 am to Oswald31
the way things are trending it makes me wonder if we even have college athletics in 10 years
revenue share alone is gonna eventually make cost to attend too high for the casual fan and it's gonna look really bad on tv when stadiums are not full in the future
that day and reckoning is coming to most campuses
revenue share alone is gonna eventually make cost to attend too high for the casual fan and it's gonna look really bad on tv when stadiums are not full in the future
that day and reckoning is coming to most campuses
Posted on 10/2/25 at 9:45 am to Henry Jones Jr
quote:
The biggest one is being “coast to coast”. The travel costs and wear and tear on the smaller programs is going to be the first thing that causes some schools to consider leaving. I think a school like Rutgers or Northwestern will willingly back out at some point or have major cuts to smaller programs which will get them kicked out.
The Big Ten is also going to learn that regionality does actually matter. They had a #2 vs #5 matchup on NBC last week and couldn't even crack 10M.
College football thrives on hate-watching. Some are hated enough nationwide that region matters less (Ohio State and Alabama, most notably) but on paper, LSU-Ole Miss shouldn't have come close to reaching the same viewership as Oregon-Penn State but it did
Posted on 10/2/25 at 9:55 am to TigerHornII
Why in the world would Big 10 need that much money?? I believe they generate more revenue than SEC if you can believe that
Posted on 10/2/25 at 10:23 am to zdfger
Mizzou with 102k viewers
Posted on 10/2/25 at 10:30 am to TigerHornII
Saudis will own Alabama football in the near future.
Modern cfb is a ponzi scheme.
Modern cfb is a ponzi scheme.
Posted on 10/2/25 at 10:34 am to TigerHornII
quote:Going the route of NASCAR wearing corporate logos and patches. College football no longer exists. It was fun while it lasted. It's all greed and chasing the money. I am almost through with the smoke screen and am growing tired of the greed. I don't blame the kids. I would take the money and run also. I blame those who are still profiting off the fans whether in the stadium or increase prices to view the games on streaming sites. It's going to backfire sooner or later. Fans can only absorb so much.
B1G working on $2B Private Equity deal
Posted on 10/2/25 at 10:57 am to TigerHornII
From what I can find online about the actual structure of this, there is nothing groundbreaking going on and the revenue is really just moving money around into different pockets, not adding 2 billion in additional revenue. The new revenue is whatever this PE firm pays for a 5% ownership stake in the league's revenue, plus any additional value the B10 thinks this new partner can add in increasing revenues.
It's a new organization with 20 shares. 18 shares go to the 18 schools, 1 goes to the B10 conference office, 1 goes to this unknown private equity partner that will buy their share and manage the business side of this like a CEO in exchange for 5% ownership and 5% of profits. And they will be pooling TV revenue plus other licensing into the new org. So it's not like they keep their current TV money + 2 billion.
If anything, the structure seems very short-sighted. It's a similar arrangement to the ownership agreement the SEC has with ESPN to run and market the SEC Network. Except in that case we badly needed ESPN for their expertise in running a cable sports channel and bundling monopoly power over the TV providers. In the B10 scenario, why do they need to sell a share of their conference in perpetuity to have this private equity partner handle their TV and licensing negotiations for them? Why can't the B10 office do that or pay attorneys to handle it instead of selling 5% of the conference? Sure they will get a one time influx of cash (likely not 2 billion in new revenue) but you lose a piece of the conference forever and add a corporate partner that may have very different motivations than member schools long term.
It's the equivalent of adding a 19th university. Except in this case you make the school pay the conference to join (like Memphis tried to do to join the B12). And the new school has no athletic program to add value, only a really good business school that promises to use their knowledge to help increase your conference revenue. Sounds like a raw deal to me.
It's a new organization with 20 shares. 18 shares go to the 18 schools, 1 goes to the B10 conference office, 1 goes to this unknown private equity partner that will buy their share and manage the business side of this like a CEO in exchange for 5% ownership and 5% of profits. And they will be pooling TV revenue plus other licensing into the new org. So it's not like they keep their current TV money + 2 billion.
If anything, the structure seems very short-sighted. It's a similar arrangement to the ownership agreement the SEC has with ESPN to run and market the SEC Network. Except in that case we badly needed ESPN for their expertise in running a cable sports channel and bundling monopoly power over the TV providers. In the B10 scenario, why do they need to sell a share of their conference in perpetuity to have this private equity partner handle their TV and licensing negotiations for them? Why can't the B10 office do that or pay attorneys to handle it instead of selling 5% of the conference? Sure they will get a one time influx of cash (likely not 2 billion in new revenue) but you lose a piece of the conference forever and add a corporate partner that may have very different motivations than member schools long term.
It's the equivalent of adding a 19th university. Except in this case you make the school pay the conference to join (like Memphis tried to do to join the B12). And the new school has no athletic program to add value, only a really good business school that promises to use their knowledge to help increase your conference revenue. Sounds like a raw deal to me.
This post was edited on 10/2/25 at 11:14 am
Posted on 10/2/25 at 11:07 am to TigerHornII
It’s time to revoke the tax exempt status of college athletics.
Posted on 10/2/25 at 11:27 am to Oswald31
Trump. As he won every swing state.
Posted on 10/2/25 at 11:34 am to Bama Bird
Here is another wild theory since it’s Thursday and I’m bored.
Givens:
The average viewership of an NFL regular season game was around 17.5 million viewers for the 2024 season
The average tv viewership for SEC games on ABC during the 2024 season was 6.4 million viewers.
Market:
NFL fan percentages
Diehard fans
Around 21–26% of Americans are considered avid or "diehard" fans who follow sports closely and engage with them almost daily.
For the NFL specifically, 21% of all Americans are considered avid fans, according to a 2023 survey. This figure is part of the 72% of all Americans who identify as football fans.
Among those who consider themselves NFL fans, a 2023 survey found that the percentage of avid fans varies by ethnicity:
Hispanic: 45% avid fans.
Black: 42% avid fans.
White: 37% avid fans.
College football fan percentages
Diehard fans
Many college football fans are deeply dedicated, with loyalty often tied to their alma mater or a regional tradition.
A 2015 Duke University study of sports fan obituaries found that "diehard" college sports fans are rare, though it profiles them as more likely to be male, white, and Protestant.
College sports fans, particularly those with season tickets, are often considered the "diehards" and are a vital source of revenue for programs.
Casual fans
Over 50% of college football fans are likely casual fans who follow the sport only during the season (August to January).
These casual fans are critical to the sport's overall viewership and TV deals, though their interest drops significantly during the off-season.
Bandwagon fans
Bandwagon behavior is well-documented in college football, particularly in relation to team success. When a team starts to perform well, social media followers and game attendance often rise.
ESPN's coverage, including the popular College GameDay show, has capitalized on the broad interest that extends beyond just diehard supporters.
The large number of casual fans creates a perfect environment for bandwagon fans to emerge during successful seasons and major events like the playoffs
So, 37% of whites are avid NFL. The other 63% are black, Hispanic , Asian and other.
Premise: The vast majority of black and Hispanic youth cannot relate to college ball because going to college etc was not on their agenda. Conversely, the boomer white Protestant generation who went to State U could care less about the NFl.
Since there are many more non college viewers across America, the non college crowd gravitates toward NFl.
Bottom line: as the Boomer college crowd dies off in next 20 years, the generation coming up is more NFL focused because many did not go to college and those that did were casual fans.
That brings me to the topic of the ops post.
How do you blend and merge big time college ball into the NFL. Yes, a new professional league like the old AFL and creating buzz and excitement that both big time college and NFL will need to keep interest.
Americans are sending their kids to soccer camps. Not football camps.
Private equity eventually wants ownership of 32 of the rop college programs to meld eventually into a new league to compete on Saturdays and SUNDAYS with the NFL
Current tv viewship has peaked and ESPN will pay only so much for 6.7 million viewers. If Alabama averaged 17.5 million, wow! Image the money.
So PE playing long game to create another cash cow.
Givens:
The average viewership of an NFL regular season game was around 17.5 million viewers for the 2024 season
The average tv viewership for SEC games on ABC during the 2024 season was 6.4 million viewers.
Market:
NFL fan percentages
Diehard fans
Around 21–26% of Americans are considered avid or "diehard" fans who follow sports closely and engage with them almost daily.
For the NFL specifically, 21% of all Americans are considered avid fans, according to a 2023 survey. This figure is part of the 72% of all Americans who identify as football fans.
Among those who consider themselves NFL fans, a 2023 survey found that the percentage of avid fans varies by ethnicity:
Hispanic: 45% avid fans.
Black: 42% avid fans.
White: 37% avid fans.
College football fan percentages
Diehard fans
Many college football fans are deeply dedicated, with loyalty often tied to their alma mater or a regional tradition.
A 2015 Duke University study of sports fan obituaries found that "diehard" college sports fans are rare, though it profiles them as more likely to be male, white, and Protestant.
College sports fans, particularly those with season tickets, are often considered the "diehards" and are a vital source of revenue for programs.
Casual fans
Over 50% of college football fans are likely casual fans who follow the sport only during the season (August to January).
These casual fans are critical to the sport's overall viewership and TV deals, though their interest drops significantly during the off-season.
Bandwagon fans
Bandwagon behavior is well-documented in college football, particularly in relation to team success. When a team starts to perform well, social media followers and game attendance often rise.
ESPN's coverage, including the popular College GameDay show, has capitalized on the broad interest that extends beyond just diehard supporters.
The large number of casual fans creates a perfect environment for bandwagon fans to emerge during successful seasons and major events like the playoffs
So, 37% of whites are avid NFL. The other 63% are black, Hispanic , Asian and other.
Premise: The vast majority of black and Hispanic youth cannot relate to college ball because going to college etc was not on their agenda. Conversely, the boomer white Protestant generation who went to State U could care less about the NFl.
Since there are many more non college viewers across America, the non college crowd gravitates toward NFl.
Bottom line: as the Boomer college crowd dies off in next 20 years, the generation coming up is more NFL focused because many did not go to college and those that did were casual fans.
That brings me to the topic of the ops post.
How do you blend and merge big time college ball into the NFL. Yes, a new professional league like the old AFL and creating buzz and excitement that both big time college and NFL will need to keep interest.
Americans are sending their kids to soccer camps. Not football camps.
Private equity eventually wants ownership of 32 of the rop college programs to meld eventually into a new league to compete on Saturdays and SUNDAYS with the NFL
Current tv viewship has peaked and ESPN will pay only so much for 6.7 million viewers. If Alabama averaged 17.5 million, wow! Image the money.
So PE playing long game to create another cash cow.
This post was edited on 10/2/25 at 12:09 pm
Posted on 10/2/25 at 11:36 am to TigerHornII
Any time a private equity firm gets involved, it’s a disaster. I noticed that Ohio State and Michigan are holding out on the deal. They may end up going independent if they are asked to carry the rest of the conference
Posted on 10/2/25 at 11:37 am to BigBro
quote:
Mizzou with 102k viewers
They play a high school schedule and talk the most shite on here
Posted on 10/2/25 at 11:42 am to lewis and herschel
quote:
All these lefty schools burn a ton of fossil fuels t
Tell me you’ve never been to Ohio without telling me you e never been to Ohio. Or Indiana or Iowa or Nebraska. Those are the most red states you will find outside of the SEC. Pennsylvania is fairly split. The others on the coasts? Sure but everyone who is above 8 years old knows that
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