French billionaire Francois-Henri Pinault is reportedly in “advanced discussions” to acquire a majority stake in Creative Artists Agency.

Citing anonymous sources, Bloomberg reported late Thursday night that CAA could receive a valuation of more than $7 billion in the potential deal, though the report also stated that talks could end without a final agreement.

Stacked with talent that includes MLB sensation Shohei Ohtani and soccer legend Cristiano Ronaldo, CAA has an estimated $17.8 billion in sports contracts between active players and non-playing clients like coaches.

The Hollywood powerhouse, which represents talent across all forms of entertainment, is the most valuable sports agency in the world, according to Forbes. 

TPG, a Texas-based private equity firm, acquired a controlling interest in CAA in 2014, a move that valued CAA at $1.1 billion at the time. CAA’s largest acquisition since TPG’s takeover was finalized in 2022 with its $750 million purchase of ICM Partners.

Pardon My French

The Pinault family is among the wealthiest in Europe, best known as the biggest shareholder in Kering, which owns a number of luxury fashion houses from Gucci to Yves Saint Laurent.

Henri’s interest in buying CAA comes just as Screen Actors Guild and Writers Guild of America strikes have destabilized the American film and TV industries where the agency reps the likes of Tom Cruise and Margot Robbie, stars of what are expected to be this summer’s highest-grossing movies, “Mission: Impossible 7” and “Barbie.”

Reigning WNBA MVP A’ja Wilson wants owners to step up financial investments in their teams ahead of this weekend’s All-Star festivities in Las Vegas, where the Aces star is a team captain.

“We have to sometimes look owners in the face and tell them to make a decision,” Wilson told Front Office Sports. “Either you’re going to give us your all and your team and go from there, or get someone in that really, actually cares.”

WNBA teams are still limited with regard to chartered flights, despite this year’s expanded program — Wilson’s Aces were even fined for breaking travel rules. Wilson says she feels blessed that Aces owner Mark Davis “wants us to be able to feel and be professional athletes, and he’s treated us as such.” 

The Aces have the only practice facility dedicated solely to a WNBA team — a disparity other players have noticed.

“People kind of hunt at the league, obviously, because that’s the easy target,” Wilson said. “But at some point, you’ve got to start looking at owners.”

New Money

Wilson — a brand ambassador for All-Star Game title sponsor AT&T, which helps promote her candle business — said she believes more corporate investment in the WNBA also would help achieve players’ individual goals. “The biggest thing is just diving into more than just the athlete of who we are,” she said.

Additional revenue could also lead to expanded rosters or new teams — a topic Wilson said she feels the WNBA isn’t ready to address until it’s 144 players are in a better collective position.

“I would love to expand our league,” Wilson said. “But at the same time, I think we need to take care of the ones that are in it right now, before we really start to expand.”

MLB will open its 2024 season in one of its biggest international markets.

The league unveiled its 2024 schedule on Thursday, and among the highlights is an expansion of its MLB World Tour. In addition to a previously announced return to London, MLB will stage regular-season games in South Korea and Mexico, plus Spring Training games in the Dominican Republic.

The South Korea games — set for March 20-21 between the Los Angeles Dodgers and San Diego Padres — represent MLB’s first regular-season competition there, advancing beyond the prior exhibition and World Baseball Classic games held in Seoul.

The country has long been a key global market for MLB, most recently enjoying a 36% bump in the 2023 WBC television audience there compared to 2017. Baseball fans’ affinity even outpaces the U.S. in some respects.

Fantasy Frustrations

One segment not entirely in favor of MLB’s Asia campaign is the fantasy sports business. 

As with prior MLB season-opening trips to Japan and Australia, fantasy operators will need to potentially adjust how they schedule draft events, while participants face greater challenges evaluating players.

“These games throw everything off a little bit,” said Greg Ambrosius, a Fantasy Sports Hall of Fame inductee, to Front Office Sports. “We’re typically holding draft events the weekend before full Opening Day — which is now after these Korea games. Then there’s the question of whether somebody there gets hurt or isn’t ready because they haven’t gone long enough in Spring Training.”

The Big 12 wrapped up its football media days Thursday in Dallas, where commissioner Brett Yormark continued to float the conference’s expansion strategy. 

“We do have a plan,” Yormark said. “And hopefully we can execute that plan sooner than later.”

At times, Yormark has been adamant that the Big 12 needed to add teams. “I’d like to stay at 14, even with the departures of Texas and Oklahoma, candidly,” he said earlier this summer.

During last year’s media days, Yormark raised eyebrows with his declaration that the conference was “open for business.” This week, he said he simply meant he’ll “explore every possibility to add revenue, diversify our conference, and do things that had not been done before.”

Perhaps recognizing the intricacies of adding teams, Yormark settled into a slightly more measured mindset this year. 

“If we stay at 12, we’re perfectly fine with that,” he explained. “If the opportunity presents itself where there’s something that creates value and aligns well with our goals and objectives, starting with the board, then we’re certainly going to pursue it.”

Lone Star Home

The Big 12 also announced that AT&T Stadium would continue hosting its championship game through 2030. The home of the Dallas Cowboys since 2009, AT&T Stadium hosted a pair of Big 12 title games before the conference got rid of its championship matchup for six years, then returned to host it in 2017.