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Troy Taormina-USA TODAY Sports/Design: Alex Brooks
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For the second time this month, a pair of U.S. soccer teams is changing hands.
The MLS’s Houston Dynamo and NWSL’s Houston Dash are being sold to real estate mogul Ted Segal for around $400 million, per The Athletic. The Dynamo were valued at $280 million in 2019.
Segal is buying the teams from Gabriel Brener, who retains a minority stake. Brooklyn Nets guard James Harden and boxer Oscar De La Hoya are also part-owners.
This is Segal’s first foray into sports team ownership. He is the founder of EJS Group, a firm that develops and finances real estate projects, primarily in the New York City area.
U.S. soccer franchises have been selling at a rapid pace as the league grows. Viewership is up 30%. MLS earns $90 million annually from TV rights.
- The Wilf family, the real estate barons who own the Minnesota Vikings, agreed to purchase Orlando SC and the Orlando Pride this month for between $400-450 million.
- Carolina Panthers owner David Tepper spent $325 million to bring a new MLS team to Charlotte. Charlotte FC will become the league’s 28th team in 2022, followed by St. Louis SC the following year. Sacramento was slated to be the 30th team, but primary investor Ron Burkle pulled out.
- Real Salt Lake is on the market, with numerous interested buyers including New Jersey Devils and Philadelphia 76ers owner David Blitzer.
Like other leagues, MLS is looking forward to brighter days ahead. Commissioner Don Garber said the league lost close to $1 billion in 2020 and could approach that figure again this year.
Last year, the league amended rules to allow private equity financing in MLS clubs, making it easier for a larger number of investors to buy minority stakes.
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Jam City/Design: Alex Brooks
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Jam City, a mobile game developer, agreed to go public in a merger with DPCM Capital, a blank-check company founded by former Uber executive Emil Michael.
The move gives Jam City a valuation of $1.2 billion, including debt.
As part of the merger, Jam City is acquiring Canadian video game publisher Ludia from FremantleMedia Canada in a deal valued at roughly $175 million.
Jam City’s highest-grossing mobile games in April, per Sensor Tower:
- “Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery” ($3 million)
- “Cookie Jam: Match 3 Games” ($3 million)
- “Bubble Shooter: Panda Pop” ($1.9 million)
The “Harry Potter” title has generated $300 million in revenue since its launch in 2018.
The company’s offerings now include Ludia’s “Jurassic Park” IP. Their mobile “Jurassic World Alive” title brought in $900,000 in revenue and 80,000 downloads in April.
In 2020, Jam City was a top 10 game publisher in the U.S. across the App Store and Google Play. The mobile gaming market is expected to exceed $205 billion in revenue by 2023.
“We expect going public will provide us with a source of capital to accelerate our growth and advance our strategic priorities,” said Jam City chairman and CEO Chris DeWolfe.
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Joe Nicholson-USA TODAY Sports/Design: Alex Brooks
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It would be an understatement to say Genius Sports had a good quarter.
The company reported earnings Thursday for the first time since going public on April 21 in a $1.5 billion SPAC deal with dMY Technology Group.
Q1 revenue increased 52% year-over-year to $53.7 million, and Genius raised its 2021 guidance from $190 million to $250-$260 million.
“Our strategy of growing the global sports data ecosystem has supported our growth in the quarter,” said co-founder and CEO Mark Lock.
In less than two months, Genius has announced the acquisition of Second Spectrum for $200 million, plans to buy FanHub, and exclusive NFL data rights. The NFL rights were secured in a reported six-year, $120 million deal with the NFL taking an equity stake in the data provider.
The company also recently partnered with FanDuel, MLB, Major League Rugby, and WynnBET.
Each division of Genius is reaping the benefits.
- Media revenue: 127% increase year-over-year to $9.4 million
- Betting revenue: 42.1% increase year-over-year to $39 million
- Sports revenue: 41.6% increase year-over-year to $5.4 million
Genius, which works with more than 400 sports leagues in total, has a current market capitalization of $3.79 billion.
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- TNT’s NBA play-in doubleheader on Tuesday saw a 60% increase in ratings over the network’s regular-season average. The broadcasts averaged 1.95 million viewers.
- YouTube star and boxer Jake Paul has agreed to a deal with Showtime. Paul’s next boxing match will be distributed by the cable subscription network.
- 2007 Heisman Trophy winner Tim Tebow officially signed his contract with the Jacksonville Jaguars, and he’s expected to play tight end. The deal reunites Tebow and his former head coach at the University of Florida, Urban Meyer.
- In the regular season, the Islanders averaged 3.43 goals at home (6th in the league) but just 2.00 on the road (30th). The Isles seem good for a win Thursday night because of Tristan Jarry’s inevitable regression, but it’s hard to count out Sidney Crosby in any game. Take New York to go over their team total at 2.5 instead and get more picks like this in The Rundown, a free daily betting newsletter. Click here to subscribe.
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U.S. stocks experienced gains across all three major indexes on Thursday. Here’s a look at how sports-related stocks performed:
Up:
Gravity Co., Ltd. (NASDAQ: GRVY) gained 10.70%
ViacomCBS Inc. (NASDAQ: VIAC) gained 4.61%
Caesars Entertainment, Inc. (NASDAQ: CZR) gained 4.24%
Down:
Foot Locker, Inc. (NYSE: FL) dropped 3.19%
Camping World Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: CWH) dropped 2.82%
DICK’s Sporting Goods, Inc. (NYSE: DKS) dropped 2.75%
(Note: All as of market close on 5/20/21)
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The Washington Wizards host the Indiana Pacers tonight. The teams last met less than two weeks ago, with Washington winning in overtime, 133-132.
How to Watch:
8 p.m. ET on TNT
Betting Odds:
Wizards -3.5 || ML -159 || O/U 237.5
Pick: The Wizards are 9-1 in their last 10 games at home, but the Pacers are 5-0 against the spread in their last five. Take Indiana to cover and lean over.
Who ya got? Reply to this newsletter with your prediction for the Pacers-Wizards winner, final score, and high scorer. Nail it, and you get a mention in Friday’s FOS PM. Don’t forget to include your Twitter handle.
Shoutout: On Wednesday, we asked readers to make predictions for Warriors-Lakers. The Lakers beat the Warriors 103-100 despite a game-high 37 points from Steph Curry. No one expected Bron to keep his crown and give L.A. the win. Don’t doubt the King!
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