Amazon is investing in trading card platform Dibbs, showing faith in the collectibles boom as a long-term trend.

Dibbs had raised around $16 million prior to Amazon’s investment, namely through a $13 million Series A round in July led by Foundry Group. 

That round was joined by Tusk Venture Partners, Courtside Ventures, Founder Collective, and athletes Chris Paul, Kevin Love, Channing Frye, DeAndre Hopkins, Kris Bryant, and Skylar Diggins-Smith.

Terms of Amazon’s investment were not disclosed.

• Founded in October 2020, Dibbs allows users to buy fractional shares of sports cards using a blockchain-backed system. 
• Alongside Thursday’s announcement of Amazon’s investment, the company rolled out a peer-to-peer marketplace for users to sell to one another directly.
• CEO Evan Vandenberg said that Dibbs will soon expand into other card collectibles like Pokemon and Magic the Gathering. It is also looking into non-card categories.

The total sports memorabilia market was estimated by Collectable.com at $5.4 billion in April.

Amazon has not focused on collectibles, but eBay hosted over $2 billion in trading card sales in the first half of this year.

Nashville Mayor John Cooper has agreed to renovate Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway in a proposal by Bristol Motor Speedway that would bring NASCAR back to the track after a 20-year hiatus. 

“The partnership will result in a modernized track that meets NASCAR series standards and transform Fairgrounds Speedway into a true multipurpose venue,” Cooper said.

The proposal still requires approval by Nashville’s Metro Sports Authority, Board of Fair Commissioners, and Metro Council to be finalized. 

• Bristol Motor Speedway would operate, manage, and lease Nashville Fairgrounds Speedway for 30 years.
• Nashville would issue about $75 million in revenue bonds for the renovations, up from a previous target of $50 million in March. 
• The proposal comes amid current renovations of Nashville Fairgrounds, which is also the site of an under-construction stadium for MLS’ Nashville SC.
• The renovated speedway will mitigate noise and expand its grandstand to seat approximately 30,000 fans, essentially doubling capacity.

NASAR went from a public to private company in 2019 after buying the balance of International Speedway Corporation for roughly $2 billion in a deal that included iconic Daytona International Speedway and Talladega Superspeedway. 

Its circuit of tracks lost between $150 million and $175 million in combined ticket revenue for the 2020 season due to limited fan attendance during the pandemic. 

Cooper projects the revitalized speedway will bring in $100 million annually to Nashville’s economy.

The UAE T20 League, a cricket league expected to launch next year, has announced a broadcasting rights deal and a number of franchise owners in a matter of weeks.

Zee Entertainment signed a 10-year broadcasting deal with the league, reportedly worth between $100 million and $150 million. The Economic Times of India reported that Zee will include coverage on at least three-to-four TV channels.

The deal comes two months after Sony’s Indian entertainment group announced it planned to purchase a 53% stake in Zee Entertainment for $1.6 billion. 

• The deal hasn’t closed, but reports have suggested the combined entity will bid on broadcasting rights for the Indian Premier League cricket tournament.
• Zee signed a five-year non-compete clause with Sony in 2017 when it sold its sports business, TEN Sports.

The UAE T20 League will start out with six teams — each reportedly sold for between $40 million and $60 million. 

In the last week, Indian conglomerate Reliance Industries Limited — which owns the Indian Premier League’s Mumbai Indians — acquired a franchise, as did Lancer Capital, which is owned by Avram Glazer, Manchester United co-chairman and co-owner of the NFL’s Tampa Bay Buccaneers — who recently lost a bid for an IPL expansion team.

A high-level Skechers investor proposed corporate changes to bring more funds to investors.

The Tremblant Capital Group, which owns 5.1% of Skechers, stated that the sneaker company should engage in an aggressive share buyback program with some of the $1.18 billion Skechers held in cash and cash equivalents at the end of Q3. 

Tremblant proposed that Skechers simplify its dual-share structure and offer only one type of shares. 

The Greenberg family currently owns 60% of the voting power in Skechers.

The changes, according to Tremblant, would align shareholders with management so that “unease around the founding family dynamics will dissipate, driving the multiple higher and creating tremendous value for shareholders.”

The investment firm predicted that its recommendations could add $4 billion in value to the Greenbergs’ $1.1 billion stake over 10 years.

• Skechers’ sales reached $1.55 billion in the third quarter, a 19.2% year-over-year increase.
• The company is reportedly considering an IPO of its Asia segment that could raise $1.5 billion.

Skechers promotes its brand with a host of current and retired athlete endorsers, including pitcher Clayton Kershaw, golfer Brooke Henderson, and sports legends Wayne Gretzky, Joe Montana, Tony Romo, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar.