Highlight Reel: Could 40% of Crystal Palace end up on the New York Stock Exchange? 🦅
This week's top stories feature the NBA, BBC, Eagle Football Holdings, Olympique Lyonnais, DAZN, Amazon Prime, Italian Super Copa, Saudi Arabia, Nike, and Corteiz
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Happy Friday!
It’s been a busy week for the sports industry. Nowhere more so than in Riyadh, which has played host to AC Milan, Inter Milan, Paris-Saint Germain, and a Cristiano Ronaldo-led Saudi All Star XI.
Let’s take a closer look at this and four other stories grabbing the headlines and my attention this week👇
The NBA returns to Europe with Paris game and BBC deal
New Lyon owner planning SPAC listing for their multi-club business
Prime Video and DAZN agree global distribution deal
World Football turns its attention back to the Middle East
Corteiz and Nike are set to launch street collaboration
The NBA returns to Europe with Paris game and BBC deal 🏀
Yesterday saw the return of the NBA to Europe for the first time since 2020 with the Chicago Bulls rolling past the Detroit Pistons in Paris.
The North American basketball league clearly views France as a key international expansion destination. According to a report from SportsPro, an agreement with the French government will see the creation of a working group of senior executives coordinating with the French Basketball Federation to implement a series of initiatives, including sharing best practices and exploring exhibition games and events with Basketball Africa League (BAL).
In a significant move even closer to home, the BBC broadcast Thursday night's game in Paris on BBC Three and iPlayer. It marks the beginning of agreement between the pair to air games for the remainder of the 2022-23 season.
New Lyon owner planning SPAC listing for their multi-club business ⚽️
The Financial Times have reported that Eagle Football Holdings, the London-based company which purchased Ligue 1 club Olympique Lyonnais at €800m valuation in mid-December, are now planning a first for the football industry.
Controlled by US businessman John Textor, the company, which also owns Brazilian club Botafogo, Belgian second tier club RWD Molenbeek, and a 40% stake in Premier League club Crystal Palace, are aiming to float their multi-club business in the US this year via a blank cheque company, targeting a $1.2bn valuation.
Prime Video and DAZN agree global distribution deal 🤝
Prime Video have agreed a global distribution deal offering customers an easy and convenient way to watch DAZN with less hassle.
Similar to agreements held by LaLigaTV and Viaplay, this will see the sports broadcaster become available as a Prime Video Channel, which subscribers can access through an additional monthly fee in Spain and Germany, with Japan to follow.
For DAZN, this news comes just a week after they announced an overall loss of $2.3bn (£1.9bn) in 2021, bringing the company's total losses over the past three reported financial years to $5bn.
World Football turns its attention back to the Middle East ⚽️
While many eyes were on Riyadh this week to watch a mid-season friendly between PSG and Riyadh All-Stars, a match which pitted Ronaldo and Messi against one another (and saw one VIP ticket sell for £2.1m), the Kingdom also played host to AC Milan and Inter Milan.
A crowd of over 50,000 gathered King Fahd International Stadium on Wednesday to watch the Coppa Italia holders defeat reigning Serie A champions AC Milan 3-0 and lift the Supercoppa Italiana.
Saudi Arabia previously hosted the Italian Super Cup in 2018 and 2019. Then, in September put forward an offer of €138m (£120.7m) to host they showpiece event until 2028/29.
Corteiz and Nike are set to launch street collaboration 👟
Corteiz projected its distinctive Alcatraz logo onto Nike’s London flagship on Monday, signalling a new partnership between the cult streetwear label and US sportswear giant.
Corteiz has become famous for using social media as its only form of advertising and relying solely on the quality of its products and word of mouth. Since August 2019, when founder, known simply as Clint, masterminded their first giveaway, they have gone on to host a number of treasure hunt-inspired stunts that have made them a viral sensation.
This move is yet another inspired example of how Nike continues to keep its finger on the pulse of youth culture.
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