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Speaker 1: This is the business of sports where in the situation

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Speaker 1: that we haven't dealt with in modern times, pandemic here

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Speaker 1: has really accelerated the investments that we've been advocating for

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Speaker 1: for years. Almost everyone out there is hoping that there's

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Speaker 1: some kind of return to normal by August September. In

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Speaker 1: depth conversations with the leaders in the sports industry. Who

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Speaker 1: wants to be the sacrificial lambs that shows up at

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Speaker 1: the first big major sporting events. We're part of something

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Speaker 1: much bigger than the sport right now, and the health

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Speaker 1: and safety of our stakeholders is both more important every moment.

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Speaker 1: I think we're all from business respective thinking about the

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Speaker 1: impact that the virus is having on across the country.

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Speaker 1: Bloomberg Business of Sports from Bloomberg Radio, thanks so much

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Speaker 1: for joining us. We're here each and every week for

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Speaker 1: you at the same time talking to the biggest names

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Speaker 1: in sports. I'm Jason Kelly along with Mike Lynch. Today

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Speaker 1: we're speaking with DC United co chairman and CEO Jason Levian. So, Jason,

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Speaker 1: so much going on, so much to talk to you about.

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Speaker 1: I guess let's start. We're to see some soccer before

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Speaker 1: too long. How excited are you. Honestly, it's hard to believe.

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Speaker 1: It's a been a long time coming, but very excited.

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Speaker 1: Our guys are very pumped. We've been cleared in Team

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Speaker 1: Washington to do uh folk team training, which was a

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Speaker 1: long time coming. We were doing individual training and good training,

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Speaker 1: but now we're back doing folk team training. So everyone's

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Speaker 1: pretty Jett, Jason, what do you think of this format here?

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Speaker 1: At This sort of reminds me a little bit of

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Speaker 1: the World Cup format or the Olympic Ice hockey format.

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Speaker 1: You play a little round robin with I think you're

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Speaker 1: in there with New England, Montreal, and Toronto and then uh,

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Speaker 1: sixteen survivors go to a knockout round. I think it's great.

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Speaker 1: I think it's really cool. I think I like the

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Speaker 1: way they've set it up. UM. I think every every

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Speaker 1: team is going to get a you know, at least

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Speaker 1: three matches in um and uh the stakes are high,

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Speaker 1: um getting out of that group. You know, certainly getting

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Speaker 1: getting out of your group is going to be important,

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Speaker 1: um for your fans and and for morale around the

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Speaker 1: team after the long layoff. UM. So I think it's

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Speaker 1: a really cool format and I think it's going to

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Speaker 1: lead some exciting play, and um, I really like that

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Speaker 1: we're getting going. Think it's fortunately we're getting going earlier

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Speaker 1: than some of the other US leagues, so we'll have

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Speaker 1: an opportunity to newly showcase the league, uh, you know,

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Speaker 1: in the town, excitement around the league and the and

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Speaker 1: the play to fans and also hope it's new fans

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Speaker 1: as well. We haven't seen this before, so Jason, as

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Speaker 1: you mentioned, you know, different sports certainly at very different

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Speaker 1: places at this moment, given your intimate knowledge not only

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Speaker 1: of soccer but also of the NBA. Assuming that the

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Speaker 1: NBA does get it all sorted out and get going here,

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Speaker 1: what made it possible for those sports to get it

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Speaker 1: across the finish line versus say, where we are with

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Speaker 1: Major League Baseball. Well, I feel I can get the

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Speaker 1: variety of factors. Um, I think you know the certainly

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Speaker 1: the league relationship with its players association is important. Um,

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Speaker 1: there's so much uncertainty right now, Um, in terms of

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Speaker 1: health and safety and in terms of what's best you know,

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Speaker 1: sort of set process to ensure those things. And also, um,

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Speaker 1: you know what works from a pragmatic standpoint, And I

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Speaker 1: think that you know, while while there's a lot of

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Speaker 1: similarities between pro sports teams and their structure and their

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Speaker 1: leagues and their relationship for their players, they are also

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Speaker 1: difference as of nuances, and so I think certainly those

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Speaker 1: have come into play. You know, I've been following what's

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Speaker 1: going on in other sports, not just in the US

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Speaker 1: but but around the world, and uh, you know, I'd

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Speaker 1: been trying to understand sort of what's what's working, with's

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Speaker 1: not working in terms of the dialogue, to try to

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Speaker 1: get everyone on the same page. So I think it's

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Speaker 1: a real credit to our ownership, to our commissioner UH

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Speaker 1: and our league and also our players that there's a

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Speaker 1: lot of passion around the sport of soccer and a

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Speaker 1: lot of momentum in the United States certainly, and I

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Speaker 1: can tell you from talking to the guys who are

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Speaker 1: reading the effort for DC United, but also the player

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Speaker 1: reps in MLS for other teams, Um, there's a real

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Speaker 1: excitement and desire to to sort of get out there

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Speaker 1: and distigurette a way to play UM which helps the

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Speaker 1: Tasty obviously at the forefront of anything they were going

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Speaker 1: to do. Jason, I want to follow up on that one.

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Speaker 1: Are the logistics that that are being laid out in

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Speaker 1: terms of hotel, how many members are of DC United

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Speaker 1: and in addition to players, coaches, staff, etcetera, UM, how

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Speaker 1: far a part of the lockers, etcetera, etcetera. That tell

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Speaker 1: me all that things that are going to be different

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Speaker 1: this time around. Well, that's interesting because you know it's

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Speaker 1: a little bit of a moving to hardy. You know.

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Speaker 1: In other words, some of the protocols, the things that

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Speaker 1: were understood by experts may have been different and lead

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Speaker 1: equal than they were in late May and into June.

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Speaker 1: Um as to what works and what doesn't work, UM

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Speaker 1: and UM, that's something that's thinking a lot of time.

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Speaker 1: And so I think that you know, I know that

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Speaker 1: the league hired UH an expert group of medical professionals

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Speaker 1: UM with infect this the expertise to sort of weigh

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Speaker 1: in on this, and UH the leadership and our lead

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Speaker 1: including joeann Niels, our TIEF administrative officers. Really it's got

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Speaker 1: a ton of time understanding that understanding what was going

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Speaker 1: to be most important safety wise through social distancing to uh,

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Speaker 1: you know, the teams together. I can tell you this,

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Speaker 1: We're gonna have forty five members of our team players,

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Speaker 1: staff and and and coaches in Orlando. UM. And originally

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Speaker 1: we thought we were going to have to go down

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Speaker 1: almost a month ahead of time. But now we've been

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Speaker 1: clear to practice in our home market. So UM, that's

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Speaker 1: that's great. It's great for our our players to have

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Speaker 1: more time at home. It's great for our coaches. UM.

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Speaker 1: So now teams are going some teams are going down early,

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Speaker 1: but I think the majority teams are going down a

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Speaker 1: week before the tournament begins on July. Economically, Jason, what

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Speaker 1: does this mean for the league and maybe specifically for

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Speaker 1: for your team or is it more symbolic than economic?

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Speaker 1: How do you break that down? I think that, you know,

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Speaker 1: if you look at the economics in the short term,

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Speaker 1: we're certainly a league. And I've been involved in the NBA,

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Speaker 1: I've been involved in soccer, you know, in in the UK,

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Speaker 1: um in the Premier League level. UM, we're certainly a

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Speaker 1: league that UM. I don't think it's a sequence that

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Speaker 1: right now our priceines our tickets, our sponsorship, our day

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Speaker 1: of team revenue, sees our meteorites. UM. And that's not

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Speaker 1: necessarily came to some other leagues like the Premier League,

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Speaker 1: So you know, not having fans all being in one

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Speaker 1: location UM stood out without a fan base there, UM.

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Speaker 1: You know, without these the revenue for selling tickets in

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Speaker 1: the day of game purchases, merchandise UM and food and beverage.

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Speaker 1: That's that's real limiting in some ways. UM. But I

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Speaker 1: think the bigger picture is what our league was focused on, UM,

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Speaker 1: which is that we've got so much momentum behind the

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Speaker 1: sports soccer in the United States, UM, so much power

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Speaker 1: behind that that and so much invested in its success

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Speaker 1: that I think we're looking at this and saying, we

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Speaker 1: think we've got a terrific product that's only gotten better. Uh. Certainly,

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Speaker 1: I think the product has improved in the excitement around

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Speaker 1: it has improved in eight years that I've been involved

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Speaker 1: in Major League Soccer, let alone the twenty five years

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Speaker 1: that the least and around. And I think we looked

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Speaker 1: at it and said, we want to get our products

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Speaker 1: in front of not only our fan base, as I said,

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Speaker 1: but the nation and the world UM, and do it

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Speaker 1: as soon as possible in the safe way. So you know,

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Speaker 1: the economics behind that are can we capture more market share?

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Speaker 1: Can we get more people excited about resuming our play?

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Speaker 1: And I think we've got the wind in our back

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Speaker 1: UM in terms of the the interest level in Major

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Speaker 1: League Soccer over the past decade and certainly over the

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Speaker 1: last few years. UM. But this is a key that

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Speaker 1: came omen for us to showcase UH the league UM

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Speaker 1: and to showcase the the competition UM and the excitement

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Speaker 1: behind that. So that that's I think that's how we

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Speaker 1: did it more than just UM. You know, I get

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Speaker 1: blocking and tackling in terms of short term revenue UM,

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Speaker 1: but there are revenue opportunities because we're gonna have the

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Speaker 1: eyes of big nation in the world looking at US

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Speaker 1: UM and there's certainly Horvord partners that want to be

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Speaker 1: a part of that UM and UH. And that's been

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Speaker 1: interesting to see since we announced that we're having this tournament. UM,

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Speaker 1: since we've gotten the buy in from our players and

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Speaker 1: our league and our coaches, UM, we've gotten inbound calls

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Speaker 1: from companies that want to participate, that want exposure to

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Speaker 1: the competition. And I think that's a testament to the league.

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Speaker 1: It's a test them into the growth of soccer. I

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Speaker 1: also think it's a testament into the dirk of live

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Speaker 1: sporting events right now, UM and and the opportunity before us.

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Speaker 1: So Jason right there in the backyard of your team,

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Speaker 1: the city where you live. Uh. It has been a

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Speaker 1: pretty phenomenal and at times scary time. UH help us

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Speaker 1: understand it from the perspective of an owner of businessman,

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Speaker 1: someone who cares about your city, cares about your players,

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Speaker 1: this is a complicated issue. I do wonder how you

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Speaker 1: approach it. Um, well, listen, I think I think the pandemic, Uh,

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Speaker 1: it's certainly made this a scary time. UM. I think

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Speaker 1: that what's done on from a social justice and racial

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Speaker 1: injustice perspective, UM, you know, around police brutality and around

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Speaker 1: systemic racism is an opportunity. UM, it's it's you know,

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Speaker 1: it's something that I think has a has a chance.

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Speaker 1: They not only galvanize our city and our community right now,

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Speaker 1: but I'm really hopeful that it's going to do a

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Speaker 1: lot more than that in terms of implementing uh, surreal

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Speaker 1: change moving forward around the country. And so, UM, you know,

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Speaker 1: this was a conversation that's been had, but but I

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Speaker 1: think not to certainly not to the level of the

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Speaker 1: extent that it needed to be has U And and

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Speaker 1: it's cold firmly in a crisis moment um. But but

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Speaker 1: when that crisis comes to this opportunity. And so you know,

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Speaker 1: I've been to dialogue and listening to our players and

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Speaker 1: our front off the staff UM and people in our

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Speaker 1: community around issues of racial adjustice, police issues UM, and

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Speaker 1: I've learned a lot and I continue to reach out

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Speaker 1: and learn more about it. I think our club as

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Speaker 1: a community has really come together UM in a very

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Speaker 1: positive way. And so I feel, you know, I feel

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Speaker 1: a lot of warmth and excitement that that and helpfulness

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Speaker 1: that this can generate some real change that I think

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Speaker 1: is critically hited in our society and and hit a

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Speaker 1: real tipping point over the past seeing Jason following up

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Speaker 1: the word you keep using as opportunity, and I think

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Speaker 1: that's a great word that applies to your your sport

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Speaker 1: right now and for some of these nights when you're

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Speaker 1: on the MLS network, you're going to be the only

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Speaker 1: game in town. Are there any innovations you're going to

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Speaker 1: try to add to the sport? I know golf tried

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Speaker 1: to put a wireless microphone on on a couple of

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Speaker 1: the golfers this weekend, just to attract some of those

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Speaker 1: peripheral fans that you know may become permanent fans. Here's

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Speaker 1: a great opportunity right now to get some of these

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Speaker 1: stray shape to come back or somebody that that really

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Speaker 1: is sort of on defense about following Major League soccer.

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Speaker 1: That's a great that's a great point. We're spending a

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Speaker 1: lot of time and investment in resources on the broadcast,

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Speaker 1: on the camera angles on the interaction between the players

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Speaker 1: and the coaches and those watching to bring them closer

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Speaker 1: to the action. And that's happening in real time right

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Speaker 1: now for the reasons that you said. One of the

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Speaker 1: interestant things I will tell you is that you know,

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Speaker 1: as we studied the sport of soccer um in the

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Speaker 1: United States, what we realized is that they're eighty million

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Speaker 1: soccer fans in the US. People are really passionate about

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Speaker 1: the sport um. So the opportunity is not just a

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Speaker 1: convert fans of other sports shoe soccer. I think the

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Speaker 1: biggest oppertuny reading is take those soccer fans and make

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Speaker 1: them passion about major LESA. Some of them love Liga

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Speaker 1: mex some of them love the Premier League or Bones

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Speaker 1: League UM and created our US soccer league, Major Leagaccer,

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Speaker 1: and I think a lot of our growth potentials is

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Speaker 1: very reals fans to fall love if they haven't already

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Speaker 1: uh with with the great competition in Major League Officer.

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Speaker 1: So yeah, in terms of the opportunity, it's in front

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Speaker 1: of us moving into uh this tournament UM and beyond UM.

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Speaker 1: And I, as I said, I think we have a

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Speaker 1: lot of momentum. You know, I've been so bullish on

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Speaker 1: the league, UM, in terms of the caliber of players,

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Speaker 1: the caliber of ownership that's come in the league in

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Speaker 1: the last eight years. UM, even the folks at the

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Speaker 1: league levels who joined the league. I think it's really

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Speaker 1: taken and gone to a new level. UM. But this

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Speaker 1: is a lightning the model opportunity in front of us,

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Speaker 1: this tournament, UM, and the opportunity to sort of capture

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Speaker 1: people's pretensions in a way that we have in the forced.

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Speaker 1: Jason talked to us about what has gone on in Washington,

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Speaker 1: especially around your fan base, but also the physical plant

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Speaker 1: of Audie Field. I mean, this was a big deal.

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Speaker 1: I went to college in Washington, and I can tell

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Speaker 1: you that back in the nineties, not a lot of

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Speaker 1: folks were excited to go to the part of town

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Speaker 1: where now is a vibrant area owing in part to

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Speaker 1: to some of the things that that you have done.

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Speaker 1: Help us understand again some of the economics of that

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Speaker 1: the bets that you made and how much they've paid

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Speaker 1: off already or or you're still waiting to pay off.

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Speaker 1: That's that's that's a great point. I So I went

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Speaker 1: to college at George Town, UH, and I was here

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Speaker 1: in the early nineties. And yes, the you know buzzer

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Speaker 1: point the waterfront was not an area you really wanted

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Speaker 1: to set foot in unless you were you up to

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Speaker 1: no good. It was empty. Um, there wasn't a lot happening. UM.

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Speaker 1: So it changed a lot. But when we got involved

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Speaker 1: with the team in shoot thousands of twelves, when I

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Speaker 1: first invest in, you know, we had a big decision

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Speaker 1: to make it. You know, I knew that the team

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Speaker 1: was not going to thrive at RFK and that was

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Speaker 1: you know, we needed to turn the page and find

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Speaker 1: a new solution. UM. And I knew that the number

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Speaker 1: one thing we were going to do UM was going

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Speaker 1: to be making the determination as to where we were

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Speaker 1: going to build a stadium and how we were going

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Speaker 1: to get that done. And you know, I reached out,

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Speaker 1: certainly to the Mayor's office, Vincent Gray was the mayor

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Speaker 1: at the time, but Muriel Bowser was the mayor now

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Speaker 1: she was on the council and very much a leader

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Speaker 1: on the council. UM and we looked for locations UM

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Speaker 1: and you know, Buzzer Point was an area that came up.

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Speaker 1: There was another area across the river called Popper Point,

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Speaker 1: which is the other side of the Anticosti River wasn't

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Speaker 1: quite as convenient UM. But we really zeroed in this

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Speaker 1: location because it was near NAT Park and you know,

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Speaker 1: if you had enough vision even eight years ago, you

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Speaker 1: could see that the neighborhood was going to take off.

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Speaker 1: You know, the wharf was coming or weds between the

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Speaker 1: wharf and the Navy Arts, and you could kind of

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Speaker 1: see that there was some momentum UH for growth there,

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Speaker 1: although no one knew how long it was gonna take.

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Speaker 1: We also looked and talked with you know, I sent

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Speaker 1: time talking to the governor and the Maryland Stadium Authority

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Speaker 1: about an opportunities in Malan and UH the Governor McCall

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Speaker 1: it UM and its predecessor in Virginia about opportunity there.

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Speaker 1: I think we made the determination that UM the long

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Speaker 1: term value of DC United UM and its impact in

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Speaker 1: the community was gonna be much greater if we had

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Speaker 1: an urban location. UM. And that was a hard decision

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Speaker 1: because and the reason I bring it up is because

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Speaker 1: it would have been a lot easier from a political standpoint,

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Speaker 1: from a financial standpoint, UM, to locate the stadium somewhere

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Speaker 1: in Maryland or Virginia. UM, there's more lands available. It

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Speaker 1: was a little less complicated, uh in terms of getting

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Speaker 1: a deal done. Uh there's public financing available there. UM.

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Speaker 1: That is a different and instructure that it would be

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Speaker 1: in industry of Columbia. UM. Just that being said, I

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Speaker 1: think we gave us the most confident about DC was

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Speaker 1: was certainly number one UM the locations, which we loved.

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Speaker 1: But number two was the commitment. And you can see

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Speaker 1: the passion and the energy uh from Mayor Bowser um

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Speaker 1: and her team. UM and may have Gray before and

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Speaker 1: his team, and also the council members that really wanted

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Speaker 1: to see the captain. And you know, how do we

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Speaker 1: not had a committed partner on the other side that said, listen,

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Speaker 1: we're gonna do it's best for tradition of Columbia. It's residents.

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Speaker 1: But you know, part of that is bringing you guys

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Speaker 1: into the mix and finding a solution for you. If

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Speaker 1: we hadn't have that committed partner, I think I would

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Speaker 1: have had to have looked else with UM. But we

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Speaker 1: we locked arms and certainly there was a lot of

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Speaker 1: back and forwards about the terms which were SAIL and

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Speaker 1: about the timing UM and who was going to pay

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Speaker 1: for what UM and how we were going to get

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Speaker 1: to steal done. But for the real public private partnership

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Speaker 1: came together UM. And in the middle of that, just

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Speaker 1: to point out, we had a change in mayor. As

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Speaker 1: I said, we had mayors are going from the council

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Speaker 1: through the mayor's office, and she brought in a new

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Speaker 1: administrative team and she wrote in some green people UM

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Speaker 1: and UH. I think Vincent granted to rific people on

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Speaker 1: his team as well. But anytime you have new new

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Speaker 1: leadership come in, UM. They took a fresh look at

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Speaker 1: our deal and I had to make sure it was

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Speaker 1: it was good for the district and good for for

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Speaker 1: everyone involved, and so that took time. UM and I

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Speaker 1: would say that persistence and patients were really important in

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Speaker 1: getting something like this done to put a stadium downtown,

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Speaker 1: and you talk about the economics of it, UM, I

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Speaker 1: think it's a game changer for us from in terms

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Speaker 1: of having real estate in the fastest growing neighborhood in

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Speaker 1: Washington U, which wasn't a change when you and I

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Speaker 1: were there twenty five plus years ago. But you know,

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Speaker 1: this area is booming. It's gonna be the most densely

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Speaker 1: populated area in the next ten years in Washington. UM.

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Speaker 1: It's a lot of young professionals who are living in

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Speaker 1: the area, but it's a real diverse group of people, UM.

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Speaker 1: And I think it's it's changed our business, has changed.

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Speaker 1: Our ability to connect with fans in DC, it's changed.

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Speaker 1: It's added new fans. UM. You know, we were a

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Speaker 1: club that was a legacy club that we started and

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Speaker 1: with a great core fan base. But what we needed

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Speaker 1: to do is keep that core fan base and treat

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Speaker 1: them really well, but also extended UM generationally and just

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Speaker 1: around the district. And I think we've done that. Being

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Speaker 1: an alley field, we've sort of put ourselves, put a

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Speaker 1: stamp on the on on the clubs uh that it

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Speaker 1: was going in a new direction UM and that and

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Speaker 1: we embraced new people that way in new fans, and

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Speaker 1: so from an economic standpoint, that's that's sort of been

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Speaker 1: the driver. We brought on a lot of new quoture partners,

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Speaker 1: you know, uh, folks like ality, who has been an

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Speaker 1: awesome partner. You know, really weren't excited about partnering with

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Speaker 1: us in our state stadium for understand dable reasons. The

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Speaker 1: building was you know, fifty plus years old and there

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Speaker 1: wasn't that opportunity to activate or a neighborhood around it.

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Speaker 1: With the newness of a stadium where we could you know,

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Speaker 1: have a premium seating and have different kinds of experiences

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Speaker 1: for fans. Um. So that was a big thing. We

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Speaker 1: brought on Eagle Bank. We brought in other partners as well,

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Speaker 1: um that are really critical to a business. So all

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Speaker 1: of that, I guess to say that we know quadrupled

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Speaker 1: our season ticket holder numbers, um, which is a great thing. Um,

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Speaker 1: we got a long way to go. We see this

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Speaker 1: as the beginning of the process for us in terms

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Speaker 1: of growing our business and becoming even more relevant and

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Speaker 1: having a bigger impact on the d m V. You know,

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Speaker 1: I think that's a great idea to get to get

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Speaker 1: into an urban area, get people use public transportation to

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Speaker 1: get to get to your event, and also to downsize

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Speaker 1: these stadiums. Now, I'm up here in Boston. The Revolution

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Speaker 1: play at Chillette Stadium sixty eight thousand. They could get

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Speaker 1: thirty thousand people, which is a heck of a crowd,

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Speaker 1: but you know, the upper deck, I gotta put canvas

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Speaker 1: on there so it doesn't feel like they're playing in

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Speaker 1: front of a capacity crowd. But when you get you know,

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Speaker 1: you build a made for soccer stadium with a capacity

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Speaker 1: of thirty thirty five thousand, you know, it's an intimate sport.

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Speaker 1: The people feel closer and more connected to the players.

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Speaker 1: And I think that was just an ingenious move by you.

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Speaker 1: And I do see more teams like the revs of

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Speaker 1: somebody trying to get an urban location and downsizing the

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Speaker 1: stadium making it solely for soccer. I think so I

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Speaker 1: think that's common in Boston, I really do. And I

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Speaker 1: think one of the things that Major League Soccer needs

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Speaker 1: to get right, UM that it's working hard at is

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Speaker 1: some of the bigger markets around the country where you

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Speaker 1: could have the biggest impact. UM, you know, need either

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Speaker 1: new stadiums or have challenges around where their stadium location

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Speaker 1: is that need work, UM. And I know that the

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Speaker 1: league is very dedicated to focusing on that. You know,

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Speaker 1: for example, not just Boston Chicago. Uh the stadium they

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Speaker 1: had played that prior to this last year, UH with

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Speaker 1: outside the city in Bridgeview. UM they've now moved to

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Speaker 1: downtown to play at Soldier Field and more Soldier Field,

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Speaker 1: but much larger than you in downtown Chicago and a

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Speaker 1: great sports town like austen Is Chicago is how I

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Speaker 1: think you connect with a fan base in a different way.

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Speaker 1: But I I would venture that you're you're right that

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Speaker 1: you know, the next several years of Major League Soccer,

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Speaker 1: you're going to see teams like the Revs, the Revs

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Speaker 1: and also the Fire in soccer specific stadiums, you know,

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Speaker 1: in urban areas, because I think that's that's going to

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Speaker 1: be a real seat of the growth of the league

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Speaker 1: and in those markets, the growth of their families. So Jason,

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Speaker 1: before we let you go, got to ask you, you know,

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Speaker 1: you have a fascinating career as an athlete, a lawyer, UH,

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Speaker 1: involved in a number of different sports. What else is

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Speaker 1: on the horizon for you? You're a young guy, and

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Speaker 1: I do wonder, you know what what the next big

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Speaker 1: project is? Is it a different sport? I know you've

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Speaker 1: gotten involved in the Premiership as well. So you're very

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Speaker 1: dedicated to soccer at the moment. But what what sort

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Speaker 1: of strikes you as a big growth areas you look

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Speaker 1: around in sports. Well, I'll say I have. UM. I

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Speaker 1: spent fifteen or twenty years focused on basketball, which was

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Speaker 1: my first love. Uh you know. I was an agent

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Speaker 1: representing players, um I uh you know, then played to

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Speaker 1: the front office of a couple of teams and then

421
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Speaker 1: put investment groups together to buying and hopefully running the

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Speaker 1: grizzling steps. I put a group together to buy that team. UM.

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Speaker 1: The last eight years, I've been all in on soccer.

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Speaker 1: When I saw the opportunity d United, I jumped at it.

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Speaker 1: I'm certainly got involved in the Premier League as well,

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Speaker 1: and in the Championship in May and in soccer. UM.

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Speaker 1: I believe that in terms of live sporting events and

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Speaker 1: live sports, I really love where basketball and where soccer

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Speaker 1: is permissions because in a little bit democratic nature of

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Speaker 1: the sports, because of the international connectivity and growth UM,

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00:22:43,040 --> 00:22:44,879
Speaker 1: and I think there's a lot of upside there. So

432
00:22:45,080 --> 00:22:47,760
Speaker 1: you know, I'm starting my ninth season at d C United,

433
00:22:48,480 --> 00:22:51,399
Speaker 1: and for me, this is a real passion. This is

434
00:22:51,440 --> 00:22:56,000
Speaker 1: something that I think has the opportunity to grow tremendously

435
00:22:56,040 --> 00:22:57,760
Speaker 1: even from where it is. I've seeing the growth of

436
00:22:57,760 --> 00:23:00,199
Speaker 1: the last eight or nine years, but I hate the

437
00:23:00,240 --> 00:23:04,000
Speaker 1: next nine years as we get towards the World Cup, UM,

438
00:23:04,040 --> 00:23:06,800
Speaker 1: where the US is going to be a host country. UM,

439
00:23:06,840 --> 00:23:09,600
Speaker 1: I think You're gonna see even a greater spike in

440
00:23:09,720 --> 00:23:13,520
Speaker 1: interest around the sport and around the league. So I'm

441
00:23:13,640 --> 00:23:16,000
Speaker 1: very focused on that. UM. I see that as a

442
00:23:16,000 --> 00:23:18,560
Speaker 1: big part of my career and my career legacy is

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00:23:18,640 --> 00:23:21,040
Speaker 1: the things that I'm doing UM. And I love the

444
00:23:21,080 --> 00:23:24,119
Speaker 1: district of Columbia. It's been a great plate for me.

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00:23:24,200 --> 00:23:26,520
Speaker 1: As I said, I was a college student to Washington

446
00:23:26,640 --> 00:23:29,760
Speaker 1: here UM and being a part of the United sort

447
00:23:29,760 --> 00:23:32,720
Speaker 1: of growth trajectory to the next level. Uh, it's something

448
00:23:32,720 --> 00:23:34,440
Speaker 1: that means a lot to me. So beyond that, I

449
00:23:34,520 --> 00:23:36,920
Speaker 1: don't I'm not really sure. I wake up every day

450
00:23:37,080 --> 00:23:38,800
Speaker 1: loving what I'm doing. I love being a part of

451
00:23:38,800 --> 00:23:42,119
Speaker 1: the team that I worked. Talked to our general manager, coach,

452
00:23:42,480 --> 00:23:45,520
Speaker 1: you know, every day. I speak to our my ownership partner,

453
00:23:46,040 --> 00:23:49,120
Speaker 1: Steed Capitan on a daily basis UM and our business

454
00:23:49,119 --> 00:23:51,840
Speaker 1: team here in Washington. So I spent a lot of

455
00:23:51,920 --> 00:23:53,800
Speaker 1: time on that, and I really enjoy it, um, and

456
00:23:53,840 --> 00:23:56,320
Speaker 1: I enjoy the other investments I've made in sports. UM.

457
00:23:56,359 --> 00:23:58,359
Speaker 1: But but as you pointed out, I think software and

458
00:23:58,440 --> 00:24:02,840
Speaker 1: basketball are the areas with I've had the most experience

459
00:24:02,960 --> 00:24:05,920
Speaker 1: and the most knowledge and and thinkers, so a lot

460
00:24:05,920 --> 00:24:08,960
Speaker 1: of growth in both of them. Well, two sports that

461
00:24:09,200 --> 00:24:12,720
Speaker 1: seemed to be ascendant at the moment, and it feels

462
00:24:12,760 --> 00:24:14,840
Speaker 1: like it's not an accident that those are the two

463
00:24:14,880 --> 00:24:17,000
Speaker 1: that were able to sort of pull it together. And uh,

464
00:24:17,320 --> 00:24:20,120
Speaker 1: hopefully get to Orlando and we'll be talking to you,

465
00:24:20,840 --> 00:24:23,160
Speaker 1: I hope as all of this goes on. Jason Levy,

466
00:24:23,200 --> 00:24:25,159
Speaker 1: and thank you so much, d C United co chairman

467
00:24:25,600 --> 00:24:29,680
Speaker 1: and CEO. Thanks guys, thanks for having so Lynchi really

468
00:24:29,720 --> 00:24:32,399
Speaker 1: interesting guy. I'm sure, like me, you read up on

469
00:24:32,520 --> 00:24:34,200
Speaker 1: his background. I mean, you know, this is a guy

470
00:24:34,200 --> 00:24:37,600
Speaker 1: I played some college ball, actually transferred from Georgetown, went

471
00:24:37,640 --> 00:24:41,080
Speaker 1: to Pomona so he could play, and you know it

472
00:24:41,200 --> 00:24:43,879
Speaker 1: kind of works his way through the agent world and

473
00:24:44,240 --> 00:24:48,200
Speaker 1: he's a dealmaker ultimately and was involved in the Sixers,

474
00:24:48,240 --> 00:24:50,920
Speaker 1: then the Grizzlies, and now this seems to be where

475
00:24:50,920 --> 00:24:54,119
Speaker 1: he where he's really focused. Hard to bet against him. Well,

476
00:24:54,160 --> 00:24:56,200
Speaker 1: what really stood off for me. Is something he didn't say,

477
00:24:56,240 --> 00:24:57,879
Speaker 1: but I found out, and I'm sure you found out

478
00:24:57,920 --> 00:25:01,359
Speaker 1: in your research. Then when he was with the Memphis Grizzlies,

479
00:25:01,960 --> 00:25:04,919
Speaker 1: they were ranked the number one pro sports franchise in

480
00:25:05,000 --> 00:25:09,200
Speaker 1: North America, the Memphis Grizzlies over the Dallas Cowboys, over

481
00:25:09,320 --> 00:25:15,240
Speaker 1: the New York Yankees, the Memphis Grizzlies. I said it,

482
00:25:15,280 --> 00:25:21,399
Speaker 1: so you wouldn't have to, I know, I know. No,

483
00:25:21,680 --> 00:25:23,760
Speaker 1: really interesting, I mean, and that I think under his

484
00:25:23,760 --> 00:25:26,639
Speaker 1: watch they made the Western Conference Finals, the Grizzlies did

485
00:25:26,720 --> 00:25:29,760
Speaker 1: so yeah, really interesting guy, and and listen the and

486
00:25:29,800 --> 00:25:31,280
Speaker 1: we I was glad we got a chance to talk

487
00:25:31,280 --> 00:25:35,080
Speaker 1: to him about it too. The choice to put that

488
00:25:35,480 --> 00:25:38,359
Speaker 1: stadium where they did in d C, which I'm sure

489
00:25:38,960 --> 00:25:41,359
Speaker 1: you know as well as I do, was bold, to

490
00:25:41,359 --> 00:25:45,119
Speaker 1: say the least. Absolutely, it's a big risk. Uh. It

491
00:25:45,119 --> 00:25:47,400
Speaker 1: could have been a bomb, it could have been a disaster.

492
00:25:47,880 --> 00:25:49,879
Speaker 1: But it worked out. And I think it's a model

493
00:25:49,920 --> 00:25:52,000
Speaker 1: for future teams. All these teams that are playing in

494
00:25:52,040 --> 00:25:56,840
Speaker 1: these football stadiums, uh, outside of of urban areas. I

495
00:25:56,840 --> 00:25:59,160
Speaker 1: think the way that that MLS is going to succeed

496
00:25:59,560 --> 00:26:01,879
Speaker 1: is a small all the venue in the middle of

497
00:26:01,880 --> 00:26:04,879
Speaker 1: the city and he's with the perfect model. Yeah, absolutely,

498
00:26:04,960 --> 00:26:07,440
Speaker 1: so one to watch for sure. You've been listening to

499
00:26:07,480 --> 00:26:10,200
Speaker 1: Bloomberg Business of Sports. We are here each and every

500
00:26:10,240 --> 00:26:12,800
Speaker 1: week at the same time, plus online wherever you get

501
00:26:12,840 --> 00:26:16,520
Speaker 1: your podcast. Catch those Mondays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. I'm Jason

502
00:26:16,600 --> 00:26:19,840
Speaker 1: Kelly on Twitter at Jason Kelly News and I'm Mike Lynch.

503
00:26:19,840 --> 00:26:22,480
Speaker 1: You can follow me on Twitter at Lynch e w CBB.

504
00:26:22,840 --> 00:26:25,360
Speaker 1: If you're listening to Bloomberg Business of Sports from Blueberg

505
00:26:25,440 --> 00:26:26,680
Speaker 1: Radio around the world,