1 00:00:00,880 --> 00:00:02,840 Speaker 1: This is the business of sports. 2 00:00:02,880 --> 00:00:05,760 Speaker 2: The business of sports can be intimidating or hard for 3 00:00:05,760 --> 00:00:06,720 Speaker 2: a starting to break into. 4 00:00:06,880 --> 00:00:09,760 Speaker 3: We really appreciate what our owners are actually there, you 5 00:00:09,800 --> 00:00:11,400 Speaker 3: know with us through the journey. 6 00:00:11,080 --> 00:00:14,640 Speaker 4: Teams ours especially have been very intentional to diversify at 7 00:00:14,640 --> 00:00:16,520 Speaker 4: all levels of the company. I think we're in bolden 8 00:00:16,640 --> 00:00:18,880 Speaker 4: years for the NFL and college football. 9 00:00:19,000 --> 00:00:22,000 Speaker 5: Our demographic reach has continued to explode. 10 00:00:22,120 --> 00:00:25,759 Speaker 6: This is going to be really unlocking the streaming platform 11 00:00:25,840 --> 00:00:26,720 Speaker 6: for sports fans. 12 00:00:26,880 --> 00:00:29,319 Speaker 2: Sports evaluations arising. We'll see when they peak. 13 00:00:29,400 --> 00:00:32,040 Speaker 7: You don't have to be the best in your sports 14 00:00:32,040 --> 00:00:34,960 Speaker 7: to make a whole ton of money. 15 00:00:35,080 --> 00:00:38,240 Speaker 1: Bloomberg Business of Sports from Bloomberg Radio. 16 00:00:41,000 --> 00:00:43,760 Speaker 2: This is the Bloomberg Business of Sports. We explore the 17 00:00:43,800 --> 00:00:46,560 Speaker 2: big money issues in the world the sports Michael Barr 18 00:00:46,560 --> 00:00:50,880 Speaker 2: along with Damian Sasauer and Vanessa Perdomo. Coming up, we'll 19 00:00:50,960 --> 00:00:54,200 Speaker 2: hear from Peter Oliver. He's the CEO of Growth Markets 20 00:00:54,240 --> 00:00:58,440 Speaker 2: at the Zone. That platform has been streaming the rights 21 00:00:58,480 --> 00:01:03,120 Speaker 2: to every single game of the FIFA Club World Cup globally. 22 00:01:03,480 --> 00:01:07,200 Speaker 2: We'll hear about the big opportunity this is for de 23 00:01:07,319 --> 00:01:11,240 Speaker 2: Zonne and what it could mean for sports on streaming platforms. 24 00:01:11,319 --> 00:01:14,000 Speaker 7: It's the first time there's been a single streaming platform 25 00:01:14,080 --> 00:01:16,600 Speaker 7: running in a competition of the scale, and we think 26 00:01:16,600 --> 00:01:20,240 Speaker 7: it will actually become the most streamed sporting event yet 27 00:01:20,319 --> 00:01:23,080 Speaker 7: because of the popularity of soccer internationally. 28 00:01:23,520 --> 00:01:27,360 Speaker 2: We'll also hear from none other than Magic Johnson. That's right, 29 00:01:27,400 --> 00:01:30,920 Speaker 2: I said Magic Johnson. He's the latest guest on the 30 00:01:30,959 --> 00:01:34,240 Speaker 2: deal with Alex Rodriguez and Jason Kelly. All that and 31 00:01:34,319 --> 00:01:37,240 Speaker 2: more is ahead on the Bloomberg Business of Sports. But first, 32 00:01:37,680 --> 00:01:41,039 Speaker 2: last week, a federal judge approved the NCAA's nearly three 33 00:01:41,240 --> 00:01:44,759 Speaker 2: billion dollar settlement with student athletes, but there are still 34 00:01:44,800 --> 00:01:48,280 Speaker 2: other hurdles to clear. Joining us to discuss is Bloomberg 35 00:01:48,320 --> 00:01:52,000 Speaker 2: Senior Anti Drust reporter Katie Rcieri kDa. Welcome to the 36 00:01:52,000 --> 00:01:56,840 Speaker 2: Bloomberg Business of Sports. Female athletes have appealed a landmark 37 00:01:56,960 --> 00:02:01,960 Speaker 2: NCAA settlement, saying it violates federal anti discrimination law. Tell 38 00:02:02,040 --> 00:02:02,760 Speaker 2: us more about that. 39 00:02:03,400 --> 00:02:05,600 Speaker 6: Thanks so much for having me. Yes, this was a 40 00:02:05,600 --> 00:02:08,960 Speaker 6: big core approval, a huge win for NC two A 41 00:02:09,040 --> 00:02:11,600 Speaker 6: two point eight billion dollars in past damages expected to 42 00:02:11,639 --> 00:02:16,320 Speaker 6: be paid out to four hundred thousand athletes, former and current. 43 00:02:16,880 --> 00:02:18,920 Speaker 6: But the NC TWOA is actually facing a big legal 44 00:02:18,919 --> 00:02:23,520 Speaker 6: threat right now. Just days after this approved, this court 45 00:02:23,760 --> 00:02:29,519 Speaker 6: proved this deal, a female athlete objectors basically said that 46 00:02:29,560 --> 00:02:32,680 Speaker 6: they were going to appeal this deal to the Ninth Circuit, 47 00:02:33,080 --> 00:02:37,080 Speaker 6: and they're saying that this deal just completely ignores Title 48 00:02:37,160 --> 00:02:41,840 Speaker 6: nine and that it is going to exacerbate inequities in 49 00:02:42,880 --> 00:02:44,720 Speaker 6: sports for the foreseeable future. 50 00:02:45,760 --> 00:02:48,080 Speaker 8: Hetie, I mean, Michael. Also, we got to talk about 51 00:02:48,120 --> 00:02:52,200 Speaker 8: the fact that this story We've now tried to have 52 00:02:52,280 --> 00:02:54,920 Speaker 8: it in the show a couple of times, and it 53 00:02:55,040 --> 00:02:55,840 Speaker 8: keeps changing. 54 00:02:56,360 --> 00:02:56,720 Speaker 6: Kittie. 55 00:02:56,760 --> 00:03:01,079 Speaker 8: Why is it that there's so much to this this settlement, 56 00:03:01,120 --> 00:03:04,160 Speaker 8: into this deal that it keeps getting appealed and it 57 00:03:04,720 --> 00:03:08,400 Speaker 8: keeps having this this living organism as it is. 58 00:03:08,880 --> 00:03:11,680 Speaker 6: Yes, this is the story that that really keeps on giving. 59 00:03:12,120 --> 00:03:14,680 Speaker 6: I've been covering litigation against n C two A for 60 00:03:14,720 --> 00:03:17,440 Speaker 6: the past two years. It's been a huge punching bag 61 00:03:17,560 --> 00:03:21,320 Speaker 6: from an ANA trust standpoint. You know, the power of 62 00:03:21,360 --> 00:03:24,560 Speaker 6: the NC to A really was shattered with the Supreme 63 00:03:24,560 --> 00:03:28,480 Speaker 6: Court decision back in twenty twenty one, and that really loosened, 64 00:03:29,200 --> 00:03:33,240 Speaker 6: you know, NT two a's hold on compensation for athletes. 65 00:03:33,639 --> 00:03:36,240 Speaker 6: So the n C two A has been battling suit 66 00:03:36,320 --> 00:03:40,440 Speaker 6: after suit after suit and losing in federal court. But 67 00:03:40,640 --> 00:03:43,640 Speaker 6: this is a settlement that N two A has put 68 00:03:43,680 --> 00:03:46,480 Speaker 6: put together last year. They wanted to get a huge 69 00:03:46,960 --> 00:03:51,440 Speaker 6: consolidated class action nil UH suit out of the way. 70 00:03:51,560 --> 00:03:53,920 Speaker 6: This was a freight train coming right at them, and 71 00:03:54,160 --> 00:03:56,680 Speaker 6: they put this two point eight billion dollar deal together. 72 00:03:57,840 --> 00:04:01,280 Speaker 6: Still it's still in many ways is at least a 73 00:04:01,320 --> 00:04:03,120 Speaker 6: lot of anti trust lawyers and scholars have said that 74 00:04:03,160 --> 00:04:07,400 Speaker 6: it still violates anti trust law. It sets a cap 75 00:04:07,680 --> 00:04:12,520 Speaker 6: on athlete compensation at up to twenty two percent of 76 00:04:12,520 --> 00:04:16,960 Speaker 6: the average revenue generated by schools and conferences can be distributed, 77 00:04:17,720 --> 00:04:20,200 Speaker 6: So the cap is estimated to be like twenty point 78 00:04:20,240 --> 00:04:23,720 Speaker 6: five million dollars per school. But antitrust lawyers have argued 79 00:04:23,720 --> 00:04:27,000 Speaker 6: that that's still an illegal cap on compensation and violation 80 00:04:27,120 --> 00:04:29,919 Speaker 6: of anti trust law. Replacing a cap of zero to 81 00:04:30,000 --> 00:04:32,800 Speaker 6: a twenty two percent cap is still a cap. So 82 00:04:32,880 --> 00:04:36,520 Speaker 6: we may actually see suits coming out you know about that, 83 00:04:36,720 --> 00:04:38,800 Speaker 6: you know, in the coming days. So this is something 84 00:04:38,839 --> 00:04:42,440 Speaker 6: that has been very controversial. Also, we've seen a lot 85 00:04:42,440 --> 00:04:45,440 Speaker 6: of concern about roster limits. So the NC two way 86 00:04:45,560 --> 00:04:48,800 Speaker 6: in its deal is limiting the number of spots on 87 00:04:48,960 --> 00:04:52,400 Speaker 6: team rosters, so that really basically their idea was they 88 00:04:52,400 --> 00:04:55,160 Speaker 6: don't want to have in Ohio State with you know, 89 00:04:56,080 --> 00:04:58,719 Speaker 6: several you know, a bench of huge, huge bench of 90 00:04:58,760 --> 00:05:01,760 Speaker 6: talent and then maybe a smaller school not having that bench. 91 00:05:02,080 --> 00:05:05,200 Speaker 6: But some students will be losing their spots on a 92 00:05:05,279 --> 00:05:07,440 Speaker 6: roster and they've worked hard all their life to get 93 00:05:07,440 --> 00:05:12,279 Speaker 6: to this point. And it's a concern for many objectors saying, hey, 94 00:05:12,279 --> 00:05:13,799 Speaker 6: we don't want to lose our spots and we shouldn't 95 00:05:13,800 --> 00:05:14,000 Speaker 6: have to. 96 00:05:14,640 --> 00:05:16,840 Speaker 2: Well, and that's I want to expand more about what 97 00:05:16,880 --> 00:05:19,919 Speaker 2: you were saying about the twenty two percent cap. Let's 98 00:05:19,960 --> 00:05:24,640 Speaker 2: take that in itself right there, twenty two percent of 99 00:05:24,640 --> 00:05:29,520 Speaker 2: Ohio State's revenue is much better than twenty two percent 100 00:05:29,800 --> 00:05:34,320 Speaker 2: of Mudville University. And my point is the smaller you are, 101 00:05:35,200 --> 00:05:36,280 Speaker 2: you're going to be messed up. 102 00:05:37,920 --> 00:05:40,680 Speaker 6: This is a big concern. It's that this revenue sharing 103 00:05:40,760 --> 00:05:44,000 Speaker 6: model that goes into a fact July one is really 104 00:05:44,040 --> 00:05:48,800 Speaker 6: going to exacerbate inequities between smaller schools and bigger schools. 105 00:05:48,800 --> 00:05:50,919 Speaker 6: If you're a big Ohio State or Alabama, you have 106 00:05:50,920 --> 00:05:53,599 Speaker 6: a massive budget, you can throw money at the best talent, 107 00:05:53,680 --> 00:05:56,000 Speaker 6: and you can and why wouldn't that athlete come to 108 00:05:56,040 --> 00:05:59,280 Speaker 6: your school to be part of that and take advantage 109 00:05:59,320 --> 00:06:03,880 Speaker 6: of that that opportunity. But that's that's gonna really disadvantage 110 00:06:03,920 --> 00:06:06,400 Speaker 6: of the smaller schools that may have one really really 111 00:06:06,440 --> 00:06:08,520 Speaker 6: good team and maybe not so great other teams. So, 112 00:06:08,920 --> 00:06:11,400 Speaker 6: you know, we're seeing there is a concern that this 113 00:06:11,560 --> 00:06:14,840 Speaker 6: is going to kind of create an uneven playing field 114 00:06:15,440 --> 00:06:16,800 Speaker 6: and smaller schools are going to be at risk. 115 00:06:17,240 --> 00:06:20,000 Speaker 8: Ki Isn't it already an uneven playing field though? I 116 00:06:20,000 --> 00:06:24,200 Speaker 8: mean when you look at the Big Ten conference football 117 00:06:24,240 --> 00:06:27,560 Speaker 8: programs as opposed to even ACC programs, I mean, it's 118 00:06:27,600 --> 00:06:28,960 Speaker 8: already pretty uneven. 119 00:06:29,400 --> 00:06:31,800 Speaker 6: Yeah, this is going to really formalize things. It's going 120 00:06:31,839 --> 00:06:34,160 Speaker 6: to really set up the rules in a way that 121 00:06:34,640 --> 00:06:37,400 Speaker 6: kind of allows colleges to participate or not. 122 00:06:37,560 --> 00:06:40,760 Speaker 4: Well, Katie, Katie, now, remind me. Didn't President Trump recind 123 00:06:40,920 --> 00:06:43,520 Speaker 4: Biden's proclamation on Title nine and revenue sharing? I mean, 124 00:06:43,560 --> 00:06:45,520 Speaker 4: I thought there was an agency fact sheet, some non 125 00:06:45,520 --> 00:06:48,359 Speaker 4: binding document that was issued by the Department of Education 126 00:06:49,440 --> 00:06:52,159 Speaker 4: and appears that you know, I guess Trump's response to 127 00:06:52,200 --> 00:06:54,520 Speaker 4: that is that it does. I guess the administration does 128 00:06:54,520 --> 00:06:57,320 Speaker 4: not view revenue sharing as within the scope of Title nine. 129 00:06:57,440 --> 00:06:59,000 Speaker 4: Talk to us a little bit about that. I mean, 130 00:06:59,080 --> 00:07:02,520 Speaker 4: where does Trump and the current administration stand on Title nine. 131 00:07:04,080 --> 00:07:06,000 Speaker 6: Yeah, that's a good question. I mean the Trump administration 132 00:07:06,080 --> 00:07:09,720 Speaker 6: has is, you know, been seeking kind of removals of 133 00:07:09,880 --> 00:07:12,120 Speaker 6: chipping away at a Title nine and also you know, 134 00:07:12,440 --> 00:07:15,360 Speaker 6: funding for transgender athletes and that kind of thing. I'll 135 00:07:15,360 --> 00:07:16,640 Speaker 6: have to get back to you on a little bit 136 00:07:16,640 --> 00:07:19,360 Speaker 6: more about exactly what his stance is on that. But 137 00:07:19,960 --> 00:07:22,280 Speaker 6: as what we know right now is that the judge 138 00:07:23,040 --> 00:07:25,360 Speaker 6: pretty much punted this issue. She did hear objections to 139 00:07:25,400 --> 00:07:29,000 Speaker 6: Title nine in this in this particular settlement. But you know, 140 00:07:29,040 --> 00:07:33,240 Speaker 6: we definitely she definitely is is is kind of has 141 00:07:33,280 --> 00:07:35,560 Speaker 6: been accused of sidestepping the issue as a whole. 142 00:07:35,840 --> 00:07:38,040 Speaker 8: Katie, do you think the way that Title nine is 143 00:07:38,120 --> 00:07:43,000 Speaker 8: written as a protection of you know, equality throughout educational programs, 144 00:07:43,040 --> 00:07:46,920 Speaker 8: federal education programs, do you think that that should be 145 00:07:47,120 --> 00:07:51,240 Speaker 8: linked to revenue sharing and the money aspect of this. 146 00:07:52,000 --> 00:07:54,800 Speaker 6: Look, I mean the settlement it suggests that the schools 147 00:07:54,800 --> 00:07:57,320 Speaker 6: would would have paid male athletes over ninety percent of 148 00:07:57,320 --> 00:08:00,600 Speaker 6: their revenue over the past six years as though nine 149 00:08:00,880 --> 00:08:03,600 Speaker 6: didn't apply. And I think they're saying, is that If 150 00:08:03,680 --> 00:08:05,760 Speaker 6: Nike wants to do that, that's their choice. But if 151 00:08:05,800 --> 00:08:09,160 Speaker 6: you're a school or a conference acting on the school's behalf, 152 00:08:09,320 --> 00:08:13,280 Speaker 6: that they're violating the law and so they want they 153 00:08:13,360 --> 00:08:15,600 Speaker 6: can either pay the athletes proportionally or they can return 154 00:08:15,640 --> 00:08:17,200 Speaker 6: all of the federal funds. But they can't do both. 155 00:08:17,680 --> 00:08:20,200 Speaker 8: Why aren't we going to see? Is this ever going 156 00:08:20,200 --> 00:08:22,320 Speaker 8: to be over, Katie? I mean, there's so much going 157 00:08:22,360 --> 00:08:24,480 Speaker 8: on here, and I mean you said it before. The 158 00:08:24,520 --> 00:08:27,320 Speaker 8: twenty two percent is still the people are arguing that 159 00:08:27,320 --> 00:08:30,480 Speaker 8: that cap is still illegal. So is the reality that 160 00:08:31,000 --> 00:08:33,400 Speaker 8: the only thing that we'll be able to really change 161 00:08:33,400 --> 00:08:36,439 Speaker 8: this is a collective bargaining and agreement like we see 162 00:08:36,480 --> 00:08:37,600 Speaker 8: in professional sports. 163 00:08:38,080 --> 00:08:41,520 Speaker 6: Well, this is a settlement that was not collectively bargained. 164 00:08:41,520 --> 00:08:43,920 Speaker 6: I think that's something that is a big concern because 165 00:08:43,960 --> 00:08:47,600 Speaker 6: they're saying a lot of the plaintiffs attorneys are saying, look, 166 00:08:47,720 --> 00:08:52,560 Speaker 6: these athletes are treated like employees. They should be they 167 00:08:52,600 --> 00:08:55,320 Speaker 6: act like employees, they should be paid like employees. That's 168 00:08:55,360 --> 00:08:58,920 Speaker 6: exactly what the incitua doesn't want. And there are two 169 00:08:59,120 --> 00:09:03,400 Speaker 6: bills floating around in Congress right now that basically explicitly 170 00:09:03,480 --> 00:09:06,200 Speaker 6: kind of say that, and that's you know, the instituation 171 00:09:06,240 --> 00:09:09,920 Speaker 6: doesn't want to have you know, it's schools playing, paying 172 00:09:09,920 --> 00:09:13,240 Speaker 6: employment taxes, dealing with labor laws. They just don't want 173 00:09:13,280 --> 00:09:17,839 Speaker 6: that headache. So Charlie Baker, he wants a federal framework 174 00:09:17,880 --> 00:09:20,960 Speaker 6: for NIL. They want uniformity across the states. They don't 175 00:09:20,960 --> 00:09:22,760 Speaker 6: want to deal with rules state by state where some 176 00:09:22,800 --> 00:09:25,120 Speaker 6: have permissive laws and others don't when it comes to NIL, 177 00:09:25,160 --> 00:09:27,480 Speaker 6: and they want to avoid all these anti trust challenges. 178 00:09:27,679 --> 00:09:31,680 Speaker 6: So they want liability antrust liability. They want a shield. 179 00:09:32,040 --> 00:09:35,720 Speaker 4: Well, you mentioned NCAA president Charlie Baker, and I believe 180 00:09:35,840 --> 00:09:38,079 Speaker 4: he is on the record as having said that his 181 00:09:38,200 --> 00:09:42,160 Speaker 4: organization currently has nearly three hundred million dollars ready to 182 00:09:42,200 --> 00:09:44,960 Speaker 4: distribute once he gets the court's permissions. So I guess 183 00:09:45,000 --> 00:09:47,280 Speaker 4: my question is what's it going to take for that 184 00:09:47,320 --> 00:09:49,199 Speaker 4: money to get unlocked and released? You know, I mean, 185 00:09:49,240 --> 00:09:52,040 Speaker 4: what's the timeline in your opinion? I mean, if everything 186 00:09:52,080 --> 00:09:54,720 Speaker 4: goes right or everything goes wrong, I mean, is money 187 00:09:54,800 --> 00:09:56,160 Speaker 4: going to flow? Are we just going to be in 188 00:09:56,200 --> 00:09:58,960 Speaker 4: this period of stasis in perpetuity? 189 00:10:00,040 --> 00:10:01,800 Speaker 6: It's the the revenue sharing is going to go full 190 00:10:01,800 --> 00:10:04,280 Speaker 6: steam ahead on July one. That's not the problem. It's 191 00:10:04,280 --> 00:10:06,720 Speaker 6: the pausing of the back pay. The two point eight 192 00:10:06,720 --> 00:10:08,720 Speaker 6: billion dollars that we're talking about that is going to 193 00:10:08,760 --> 00:10:11,400 Speaker 6: be this appeal is going to be kind of locking 194 00:10:11,480 --> 00:10:14,400 Speaker 6: up until it's exhausted. So the revenue sharing is is 195 00:10:15,000 --> 00:10:16,920 Speaker 6: good to go. They're moving ahead. The n C two 196 00:10:16,920 --> 00:10:19,240 Speaker 6: A has said to me in a statement that you know, 197 00:10:19,280 --> 00:10:21,840 Speaker 6: we are moving full steam ahead. That the judge you know, 198 00:10:21,920 --> 00:10:25,200 Speaker 6: had heard these objections about the Title nine end has 199 00:10:26,040 --> 00:10:28,840 Speaker 6: has overruled them, and so as far as they're concerned, 200 00:10:29,040 --> 00:10:31,720 Speaker 6: you know, they're moving ahead and they're they're they're not 201 00:10:31,720 --> 00:10:33,880 Speaker 6: going to let this, uh let this stop them. 202 00:10:34,000 --> 00:10:35,880 Speaker 4: Yeah, but the two point eight million, I guess I 203 00:10:35,960 --> 00:10:38,280 Speaker 4: understand that the two eighty five is just a you know, 204 00:10:38,360 --> 00:10:40,240 Speaker 4: percentage of the two point eight that you know is 205 00:10:40,280 --> 00:10:42,800 Speaker 4: back pay or for damages. But you know, how long 206 00:10:42,840 --> 00:10:44,760 Speaker 4: can can that sit here? I mean, like, I mean, 207 00:10:44,800 --> 00:10:47,200 Speaker 4: could it sit there for years? I mean, I mean, 208 00:10:47,360 --> 00:10:48,280 Speaker 4: what are your thoughts on that? 209 00:10:49,000 --> 00:10:50,920 Speaker 6: Well, we're going to see more appeals. That's the thing 210 00:10:51,080 --> 00:10:53,640 Speaker 6: is that you know, VP mentioned the other day that 211 00:10:53,679 --> 00:10:55,840 Speaker 6: you thought, you know, asked about the Title nine appeal, 212 00:10:55,920 --> 00:10:57,920 Speaker 6: and look where we are now. So we're going to 213 00:10:57,960 --> 00:10:59,880 Speaker 6: see more and more that that can actually that will 214 00:11:00,040 --> 00:11:03,160 Speaker 6: kind of stop the back pay from being allocated. As 215 00:11:03,160 --> 00:11:04,800 Speaker 6: to when it's going to stop, I don't know, but 216 00:11:04,880 --> 00:11:09,480 Speaker 6: I anticipate, you know, opt out plane of suing individuals 217 00:11:09,480 --> 00:11:12,720 Speaker 6: continuing to sue. I expect the suits that are already 218 00:11:12,720 --> 00:11:14,280 Speaker 6: in play. It had nothing to do with the settlement 219 00:11:14,360 --> 00:11:16,959 Speaker 6: to move forward. You know, there are teams from back 220 00:11:17,000 --> 00:11:18,800 Speaker 6: in the nineteen eighties that are suing the n C 221 00:11:18,920 --> 00:11:22,360 Speaker 6: two A over nil, saying, hey, you built your image 222 00:11:22,400 --> 00:11:26,440 Speaker 6: on and your your powerhouse organization on our names, and 223 00:11:26,480 --> 00:11:29,400 Speaker 6: we haven't been paid. You know. Antitrust lawyers have said 224 00:11:29,440 --> 00:11:31,640 Speaker 6: sometimes these cases have been brought too late. There's a 225 00:11:31,679 --> 00:11:34,280 Speaker 6: four year federal statute that says you can't bring it 226 00:11:34,360 --> 00:11:36,920 Speaker 6: has to be brought within the four year timeframe of 227 00:11:36,960 --> 00:11:39,400 Speaker 6: when the injury occurred. And so a lot of those 228 00:11:39,440 --> 00:11:42,679 Speaker 6: suits may fall by the wayside. But nty two A, 229 00:11:42,760 --> 00:11:45,480 Speaker 6: bottom line, has to be ready for its next threat, 230 00:11:45,600 --> 00:11:46,439 Speaker 6: next legal threat. 231 00:11:47,080 --> 00:11:51,480 Speaker 2: You you are too kind and you know I want 232 00:11:51,520 --> 00:11:54,120 Speaker 2: to give kind of what Vanessa was saying, to get 233 00:11:54,160 --> 00:11:56,880 Speaker 2: more and off the sausage is made on this show. 234 00:11:57,520 --> 00:12:02,120 Speaker 2: We have recorded an interview earlier before this news broke 235 00:12:02,400 --> 00:12:04,240 Speaker 2: and what was supposed to happen at the time of 236 00:12:04,280 --> 00:12:07,200 Speaker 2: this taping is that I'll get some you know, goodbyes 237 00:12:07,320 --> 00:12:10,560 Speaker 2: from you know, Boo, Pooky and Geezer, and that was 238 00:12:10,920 --> 00:12:13,160 Speaker 2: supposed to be the end of the show, but that 239 00:12:13,360 --> 00:12:16,959 Speaker 2: all changed with this breaking story. And Katie, you are 240 00:12:16,960 --> 00:12:19,280 Speaker 2: so kind to come back on and talk with this 241 00:12:19,400 --> 00:12:20,720 Speaker 2: and we really do appreciate it. 242 00:12:21,120 --> 00:12:23,079 Speaker 6: Thank you so much for having me. I really appreciate it. 243 00:12:24,640 --> 00:12:27,199 Speaker 2: Or thanks to Katie Rcieri for joining us. She is 244 00:12:27,240 --> 00:12:31,040 Speaker 2: a senior antitrust reporter with Bloomberg. Up next, return to 245 00:12:31,240 --> 00:12:34,520 Speaker 2: the FIFA Club World Cup getting underway this weekend and 246 00:12:34,640 --> 00:12:37,760 Speaker 2: the global streaming platform that you can use to catch 247 00:12:37,840 --> 00:12:41,840 Speaker 2: every game. For Damian Sasauer and Vanessa Bernobo. I'm Michael Barr. 248 00:12:42,000 --> 00:12:45,760 Speaker 2: You're listening to the Bloomberg Business of Sports Bloomberg Radio 249 00:12:45,880 --> 00:12:46,800 Speaker 2: around the world. 250 00:12:51,120 --> 00:12:55,120 Speaker 1: This is Bloomberg Business of Sports from Bloomberg Radio. 251 00:12:56,720 --> 00:12:59,320 Speaker 2: This is the Bloomberg Business of Sports. We explore the 252 00:12:59,400 --> 00:13:02,080 Speaker 2: big money issues in the world of sports on Michael Barr. 253 00:13:02,400 --> 00:13:05,319 Speaker 2: The FIFA World Cup is this weekend and the Zone 254 00:13:05,640 --> 00:13:08,840 Speaker 2: is streaming every game across the globe for free. Our 255 00:13:08,880 --> 00:13:11,720 Speaker 2: own Vanessa Bronomo got a chance to speak with CEO 256 00:13:12,040 --> 00:13:15,520 Speaker 2: of Growth Markets at the Zone, Pete Oliver. Let's take 257 00:13:15,559 --> 00:13:16,920 Speaker 2: a listen to their conversation. 258 00:13:17,480 --> 00:13:20,040 Speaker 8: So I am joined by Pete Oliver, CEO of Growth 259 00:13:20,080 --> 00:13:23,240 Speaker 8: Markets at Dizone. Pete, thanks for joining the Bloomberg Business 260 00:13:23,280 --> 00:13:27,719 Speaker 8: of Sports, Business of Soccer Special, Thanks so much, Thank 261 00:13:27,760 --> 00:13:31,120 Speaker 8: you for having me. So Club World Cup is kicking 262 00:13:31,240 --> 00:13:35,800 Speaker 8: off this weekend. Super excited for it. Dizone has the 263 00:13:35,840 --> 00:13:38,960 Speaker 8: global rights for it. Tell us all about how to 264 00:13:39,040 --> 00:13:41,480 Speaker 8: find it, where where the games are, because there's also 265 00:13:41,640 --> 00:13:44,679 Speaker 8: TV partnerships as well, right there are. 266 00:13:44,840 --> 00:13:47,040 Speaker 7: I mean, this is quite unique and a bit of 267 00:13:47,120 --> 00:13:50,560 Speaker 7: a first for a streaming platform. So Design will be 268 00:13:50,559 --> 00:13:54,880 Speaker 7: streaming every single game for free, and Design is available 269 00:13:54,880 --> 00:13:59,599 Speaker 7: available worldwide, so whether you're in the US, Europe, the 270 00:13:59,600 --> 00:14:01,880 Speaker 7: Middle East, you'll be able to download the Zone app 271 00:14:01,960 --> 00:14:05,559 Speaker 7: and watch all sixty three games for free. And it's 272 00:14:05,600 --> 00:14:08,439 Speaker 7: the first time there's been a single streaming platform running 273 00:14:08,440 --> 00:14:10,760 Speaker 7: in a competition of the scale, and we think it 274 00:14:10,800 --> 00:14:14,679 Speaker 7: will actually become the most streamed sporting event yet because 275 00:14:14,679 --> 00:14:17,160 Speaker 7: of the popularity of soccer internationally. 276 00:14:17,600 --> 00:14:18,520 Speaker 9: But you're absolutely right. 277 00:14:18,559 --> 00:14:22,880 Speaker 7: We've also worked with local broadcast partners, so here in 278 00:14:22,880 --> 00:14:26,520 Speaker 7: the US, we're working with T and T and Univision 279 00:14:26,880 --> 00:14:28,840 Speaker 7: who have got a selection of games, not all of 280 00:14:28,840 --> 00:14:31,800 Speaker 7: the games, but a selection of games, and that's really helping, 281 00:14:31,920 --> 00:14:35,240 Speaker 7: you know, extend the audience, make people aware of the tournament, 282 00:14:36,360 --> 00:14:38,920 Speaker 7: and you know, promoting FIFA and the Zone overall. So 283 00:14:39,080 --> 00:14:41,440 Speaker 7: just over twenty games will be available on those two 284 00:14:41,440 --> 00:14:44,160 Speaker 7: broadcasters for US customers as well. 285 00:14:44,960 --> 00:14:49,280 Speaker 8: And the Zone is typically a subscription based platform, right, 286 00:14:49,320 --> 00:14:51,840 Speaker 8: so why make these games free for everyone? 287 00:14:52,720 --> 00:14:56,240 Speaker 7: Yeah, we started We've traditionally been a PATV platform with 288 00:14:56,320 --> 00:14:59,320 Speaker 7: subscription and pay per view, but around a year ago 289 00:14:59,400 --> 00:15:02,960 Speaker 7: we started at experimenting with free content and in Europe 290 00:15:02,960 --> 00:15:06,320 Speaker 7: we've run a number of events for free and we 291 00:15:06,360 --> 00:15:07,960 Speaker 7: think it's a very good model for an event like 292 00:15:08,000 --> 00:15:10,840 Speaker 7: this because we can bring in a huge new audience 293 00:15:10,880 --> 00:15:13,080 Speaker 7: to our platform and introduce our brand to a lot 294 00:15:13,080 --> 00:15:16,280 Speaker 7: of new sports fans. Obviously, we ask people to register, 295 00:15:16,360 --> 00:15:18,120 Speaker 7: so we do get some details, we get their email 296 00:15:18,160 --> 00:15:20,960 Speaker 7: address and in the future can sell them a paid subscription. 297 00:15:21,720 --> 00:15:23,600 Speaker 7: And for an event like this, we've had a very 298 00:15:23,640 --> 00:15:27,160 Speaker 7: big opportunity on advertising and sponsorship, so by making the 299 00:15:27,200 --> 00:15:30,680 Speaker 7: event free, we're able to really really increase the reach 300 00:15:30,760 --> 00:15:33,840 Speaker 7: for brands, I should say we have got a paid 301 00:15:33,920 --> 00:15:36,880 Speaker 7: version of the products as well, so the free product 302 00:15:36,960 --> 00:15:39,240 Speaker 7: is very good. But if you want to have HDR 303 00:15:39,360 --> 00:15:43,240 Speaker 7: picture quality less ads, you can upgrade for a small 304 00:15:43,240 --> 00:15:45,560 Speaker 7: fee and pay for a premium version of the Club 305 00:15:45,560 --> 00:15:47,600 Speaker 7: World Cup. But we do expect most people will watch 306 00:15:47,600 --> 00:15:49,800 Speaker 7: it for free and that's really going to build the 307 00:15:49,800 --> 00:15:53,800 Speaker 7: Dezone brand and the Zone installed userbase around the world. 308 00:15:54,200 --> 00:15:59,080 Speaker 8: How does less ads work for a live sporting event, So. 309 00:15:59,000 --> 00:16:02,360 Speaker 7: It's a great question because obviously we have breaks where 310 00:16:02,360 --> 00:16:05,520 Speaker 7: there will be some ads. So for a soccer game, 311 00:16:05,560 --> 00:16:09,400 Speaker 7: actually you don't really have much break in play, so 312 00:16:09,440 --> 00:16:11,640 Speaker 7: you've got halftime, but apart from that, it's a pretty 313 00:16:11,680 --> 00:16:15,360 Speaker 7: continuous match. And we will be removing sort of in 314 00:16:15,400 --> 00:16:18,400 Speaker 7: play advertising for people who pay a small fee, So 315 00:16:18,800 --> 00:16:20,800 Speaker 7: during the game there will be some in play advertising, 316 00:16:20,880 --> 00:16:22,520 Speaker 7: not a huge amount, but some, and if you pay, 317 00:16:22,560 --> 00:16:23,240 Speaker 7: you won't see that. 318 00:16:23,440 --> 00:16:25,440 Speaker 8: And recently we were at an event together and you 319 00:16:25,480 --> 00:16:29,200 Speaker 8: had talked about this being one of the catalysts for 320 00:16:29,440 --> 00:16:33,200 Speaker 8: growing the brand in the US, specifically because here known 321 00:16:33,240 --> 00:16:37,720 Speaker 8: more as a boxing platform, right, So why was this 322 00:16:37,840 --> 00:16:40,160 Speaker 8: the tournament? Why this tournament do you think is going 323 00:16:40,200 --> 00:16:44,560 Speaker 8: to help extend the brand reach overall for soccer and 324 00:16:44,680 --> 00:16:46,120 Speaker 8: for overall for the brand. 325 00:16:47,000 --> 00:16:48,400 Speaker 9: Yeah, and that's I mean great question. 326 00:16:48,440 --> 00:16:49,800 Speaker 7: I mean I think, you know, first of all, for 327 00:16:49,840 --> 00:16:53,720 Speaker 7: the US, we have historically here been a combat sports platform, 328 00:16:54,120 --> 00:16:57,440 Speaker 7: whereas if you look in Europe and Japan, we're very 329 00:16:57,480 --> 00:17:01,040 Speaker 7: well known, as you know, a leading multi sport with 330 00:17:01,080 --> 00:17:03,760 Speaker 7: a lot of soccer, baseball, and so on in those countries. 331 00:17:04,000 --> 00:17:07,240 Speaker 7: And so for US, having a tournament that's hosted in 332 00:17:07,280 --> 00:17:10,280 Speaker 7: the US, we think is very powerful. It's in the 333 00:17:10,320 --> 00:17:14,040 Speaker 7: time zone, it will be you know, across eleven different 334 00:17:14,200 --> 00:17:16,480 Speaker 7: US cities. People are going to be very aware it's happening. 335 00:17:16,840 --> 00:17:20,320 Speaker 7: So for US, that's a good tournament to grab brand 336 00:17:21,040 --> 00:17:24,480 Speaker 7: in the States. And also we are soccer experts. We 337 00:17:24,560 --> 00:17:26,560 Speaker 7: have all of the big leagues in Europe, so you know, 338 00:17:26,600 --> 00:17:29,800 Speaker 7: in Italy we have Seriah, the Bundesliga, in Germany, La 339 00:17:29,920 --> 00:17:32,840 Speaker 7: Liga and Spain, and so our production teams are very 340 00:17:32,920 --> 00:17:35,639 Speaker 7: expert in that kind of coverage. So we feel we 341 00:17:35,640 --> 00:17:38,880 Speaker 7: can give a really great experience for viewers. I should say, 342 00:17:38,920 --> 00:17:42,199 Speaker 7: beyond the US soccer or as I would call it, 343 00:17:42,240 --> 00:17:45,760 Speaker 7: living in the UK, football is the biggest sport in 344 00:17:45,800 --> 00:17:48,760 Speaker 7: the world. You know, it's loved in South America, it's 345 00:17:48,760 --> 00:17:51,480 Speaker 7: loved across Europe, the Middle East. 346 00:17:51,560 --> 00:17:53,879 Speaker 9: You know, it is actually the most popular sport in 347 00:17:53,920 --> 00:17:54,320 Speaker 9: the world. 348 00:17:54,359 --> 00:17:55,840 Speaker 7: And as a result, we'll be able to bring in 349 00:17:55,880 --> 00:17:57,480 Speaker 7: a very, very large global audience. 350 00:17:57,880 --> 00:17:59,920 Speaker 8: Do you think that the global audience is going to 351 00:18:01,119 --> 00:18:03,119 Speaker 8: outweigh the audience here in the US. 352 00:18:05,600 --> 00:18:07,040 Speaker 9: Well, that's an interesting question. 353 00:18:07,160 --> 00:18:09,640 Speaker 7: I think I think in the US we will get 354 00:18:09,760 --> 00:18:12,480 Speaker 7: a very significant audience, you know, in the tens of 355 00:18:12,480 --> 00:18:15,359 Speaker 7: millions of people I think we'll watch this tournament, But 356 00:18:15,400 --> 00:18:18,560 Speaker 7: if we take the sort of global footprints with we 357 00:18:18,640 --> 00:18:20,640 Speaker 7: think it will be much more in the hundreds of millions. 358 00:18:20,640 --> 00:18:23,159 Speaker 7: And that's because of the sheer scale of fans you 359 00:18:23,240 --> 00:18:27,080 Speaker 7: have in countries in South America, Europe, the Middle East 360 00:18:27,080 --> 00:18:29,440 Speaker 7: and so on. So we think it'll be very significant 361 00:18:29,520 --> 00:18:32,000 Speaker 7: for us in the US, but on a global scale, 362 00:18:32,200 --> 00:18:33,240 Speaker 7: probably even bigger. 363 00:18:33,680 --> 00:18:35,919 Speaker 8: So you mentioned hundreds of millions of viewers there, and 364 00:18:35,960 --> 00:18:38,280 Speaker 8: I know that one of the things that you guys 365 00:18:38,320 --> 00:18:41,359 Speaker 8: are looking at to be the most streamed sporting event 366 00:18:41,920 --> 00:18:45,479 Speaker 8: you know, in the history of streaming, is that because 367 00:18:45,480 --> 00:18:49,720 Speaker 8: you're looking at all sixty of those games global globally 368 00:18:49,840 --> 00:18:52,800 Speaker 8: that you think will reach that over one hundred million 369 00:18:52,840 --> 00:18:54,920 Speaker 8: mark that is held right now by what Jake Paul 370 00:18:54,960 --> 00:18:55,880 Speaker 8: and Mike Tyson fight. 371 00:18:56,960 --> 00:18:59,040 Speaker 7: Yes, I think, I mean, I think over the whole 372 00:18:59,040 --> 00:19:02,800 Speaker 7: tournament will easily see over one hundred million individual people 373 00:19:03,280 --> 00:19:05,520 Speaker 7: watching it or streaming it. To give you a sense, 374 00:19:05,560 --> 00:19:08,040 Speaker 7: you know, if I take a soccer club like Real Madrid, 375 00:19:08,359 --> 00:19:11,320 Speaker 7: they've got over half a billion fans worldwide, you know, 376 00:19:11,600 --> 00:19:15,800 Speaker 7: huge huge audience. The clubs in South America typically you know, 377 00:19:15,920 --> 00:19:19,360 Speaker 7: tens of millions of people following River Plate, Boca Juniors. 378 00:19:19,359 --> 00:19:24,080 Speaker 7: So these these teams have huge, huge followings and as 379 00:19:24,080 --> 00:19:26,120 Speaker 7: a result, we think the cumulative number will be very 380 00:19:26,200 --> 00:19:29,679 Speaker 7: high in terms of you know, the single biggest stream 381 00:19:29,720 --> 00:19:32,159 Speaker 7: match clearly that will be towards the end, the semi 382 00:19:32,160 --> 00:19:34,760 Speaker 7: finals of the final, I would predict, depending on the teams, 383 00:19:35,280 --> 00:19:37,359 Speaker 7: and we think that would be a very significant number. 384 00:19:37,359 --> 00:19:39,280 Speaker 7: But we'll have to see how we get on and 385 00:19:39,320 --> 00:19:41,600 Speaker 7: which teams make it. It'll be a bit dependent on 386 00:19:42,200 --> 00:19:43,200 Speaker 7: the teams that get there. 387 00:19:43,440 --> 00:19:47,720 Speaker 8: And as we're talking about the global aspect of it all, 388 00:19:48,320 --> 00:19:51,320 Speaker 8: then how does that work, you know, in terms of 389 00:19:51,480 --> 00:19:53,720 Speaker 8: continuously growing that as well. I know you guys have 390 00:19:53,760 --> 00:19:56,199 Speaker 8: a partnership with Saudi Pro League. Is that going to 391 00:19:56,240 --> 00:19:58,240 Speaker 8: continue to extend as well. 392 00:19:59,400 --> 00:20:01,840 Speaker 7: Yeah, We've got number of big leagues we work with, 393 00:20:02,800 --> 00:20:06,640 Speaker 7: and for instance, you know, having global highlights, having access 394 00:20:07,119 --> 00:20:11,119 Speaker 7: to the big European leagues where we can get interviews, news, 395 00:20:11,480 --> 00:20:13,440 Speaker 7: you know, on the ground footage, all of that will 396 00:20:13,520 --> 00:20:17,320 Speaker 7: kind of go into our global service. There are a 397 00:20:17,400 --> 00:20:19,160 Speaker 7: number of other things we're working on at the moment 398 00:20:19,200 --> 00:20:21,040 Speaker 7: for global rights beyond what. 399 00:20:21,000 --> 00:20:21,679 Speaker 9: We currently have. 400 00:20:22,200 --> 00:20:23,800 Speaker 7: And again over the summer, I think you'll see a 401 00:20:23,840 --> 00:20:26,800 Speaker 7: few more announcements from US about other soccer rights and 402 00:20:26,840 --> 00:20:30,720 Speaker 7: other sports rights that will be making available worldwide. 403 00:20:31,080 --> 00:20:34,040 Speaker 8: Yeah. One of the things you know that has recently 404 00:20:34,040 --> 00:20:36,719 Speaker 8: come out about the Club World Cup is that ticket 405 00:20:36,840 --> 00:20:39,720 Speaker 8: sales aren't going as well as you know originally thought. 406 00:20:40,280 --> 00:20:43,520 Speaker 8: Does that give you any sort of concern for the 407 00:20:43,600 --> 00:20:44,800 Speaker 8: viewership aspect of it? 408 00:20:46,280 --> 00:20:48,040 Speaker 9: Well, I think there's a few things. On ticket sales. 409 00:20:48,040 --> 00:20:49,879 Speaker 7: The first thing I would say is I would fully 410 00:20:49,920 --> 00:20:53,240 Speaker 7: expect the very big teams to sell out. So if 411 00:20:53,320 --> 00:20:56,560 Speaker 7: Chelsea come and do a preseason tour in the US, 412 00:20:56,640 --> 00:20:59,080 Speaker 7: not even in a competition like this, they sell out 413 00:20:59,080 --> 00:21:02,480 Speaker 7: all of the stadiums right away. Real Madrid will sell out, 414 00:21:02,680 --> 00:21:04,720 Speaker 7: you know, the big South American teams will sell out, 415 00:21:04,720 --> 00:21:07,520 Speaker 7: so I think when we get to the stadiums, we're 416 00:21:07,560 --> 00:21:09,560 Speaker 7: going to see them a lot busier than maybe people 417 00:21:09,560 --> 00:21:13,000 Speaker 7: are saying they will be. Clearly, some fixtures may may 418 00:21:13,160 --> 00:21:16,919 Speaker 7: may feature teams that are less famous, less popular, and 419 00:21:16,960 --> 00:21:18,520 Speaker 7: we'll see how they get on. But I think first 420 00:21:18,520 --> 00:21:21,160 Speaker 7: of all, I think you know, we will see stadiums 421 00:21:21,160 --> 00:21:23,800 Speaker 7: filling up a lot more. And people do often make 422 00:21:23,880 --> 00:21:26,640 Speaker 7: late decisions on these things. But from an audience point 423 00:21:26,640 --> 00:21:29,240 Speaker 7: of view on streaming, we are very confident on it. 424 00:21:29,320 --> 00:21:33,080 Speaker 7: We can see trends when we look on Google and 425 00:21:33,119 --> 00:21:35,680 Speaker 7: for how many people are searching for this tournament worldwide. 426 00:21:36,040 --> 00:21:38,760 Speaker 7: You know that is growing really, really well at the moment. 427 00:21:39,200 --> 00:21:41,760 Speaker 7: We've already seen a very large number of customers register 428 00:21:41,840 --> 00:21:44,199 Speaker 7: for the Zone app, so they're ready to watch it, 429 00:21:44,840 --> 00:21:47,920 Speaker 7: and we're very confident the audiences will be big because 430 00:21:47,920 --> 00:21:50,200 Speaker 7: of the popularity of soccer worldwide. 431 00:21:51,000 --> 00:21:53,600 Speaker 8: Is do you think that there's some sort of you know, 432 00:21:53,720 --> 00:21:56,800 Speaker 8: partnership between you and FIFA and the clubs themselves that 433 00:21:57,359 --> 00:21:59,520 Speaker 8: you know, you want to make extra content around maybe 434 00:21:59,520 --> 00:22:02,399 Speaker 8: those teams you aren't as popular. Is there plans for that? 435 00:22:02,480 --> 00:22:03,439 Speaker 6: Are you already doing that. 436 00:22:04,400 --> 00:22:06,120 Speaker 9: Yeah, we're already We're already on the case. 437 00:22:06,200 --> 00:22:09,399 Speaker 7: So we've already made a short documentary for each team 438 00:22:09,440 --> 00:22:10,240 Speaker 7: about who they are. 439 00:22:10,680 --> 00:22:12,080 Speaker 9: You'll be seen as we go into the tournament. 440 00:22:12,119 --> 00:22:14,000 Speaker 7: We'll be pushing that with FIFA on a lot of 441 00:22:14,040 --> 00:22:18,800 Speaker 7: our social media channels. And there are some really exciting teams, 442 00:22:18,840 --> 00:22:20,520 Speaker 7: you know, in the tournament that people may not be 443 00:22:20,560 --> 00:22:24,840 Speaker 7: fully familiar with. So you know, as an example, Al Halao, 444 00:22:24,960 --> 00:22:28,000 Speaker 7: who are coming from the Middle East, have been champions 445 00:22:28,040 --> 00:22:29,760 Speaker 7: out there for years and years and have some of 446 00:22:29,800 --> 00:22:32,879 Speaker 7: the best players in the world, particularly from South America, 447 00:22:33,520 --> 00:22:35,639 Speaker 7: playing for them. So I think fans are going to 448 00:22:35,680 --> 00:22:37,960 Speaker 7: discover a lot of new players and a bit like 449 00:22:38,040 --> 00:22:40,640 Speaker 7: a national team World Cup, there will be new stars 450 00:22:40,680 --> 00:22:43,200 Speaker 7: that come out of this, players who score a lot 451 00:22:43,200 --> 00:22:46,000 Speaker 7: of goals, goalkeepers who make incredible saves, and that's all 452 00:22:46,040 --> 00:22:49,560 Speaker 7: part of the sort of intrigue of bringing these teams together. 453 00:22:49,880 --> 00:22:52,200 Speaker 8: Yeah, heck yeah, give it on for the goalkeepers there, 454 00:22:52,240 --> 00:22:54,160 Speaker 8: because I love that as a goalkeeper and we don't 455 00:22:54,160 --> 00:22:56,320 Speaker 8: get enough love, I don't think. And our highlights are 456 00:22:56,400 --> 00:23:00,119 Speaker 8: just good. And you stalked there about you know a 457 00:23:00,160 --> 00:23:02,440 Speaker 8: little bit about social media and stuff, and recently announced 458 00:23:02,440 --> 00:23:05,239 Speaker 8: a partnership with TikTok. How does that work, you know 459 00:23:05,320 --> 00:23:08,000 Speaker 8: in terms of are people going to be able to 460 00:23:08,040 --> 00:23:11,040 Speaker 8: share you know, because with rights on social media, that's 461 00:23:11,080 --> 00:23:14,200 Speaker 8: a little bit tricky with sharing highlights and things like that. 462 00:23:15,160 --> 00:23:17,439 Speaker 7: Well, I mean again, as part of making this you know, 463 00:23:17,840 --> 00:23:21,199 Speaker 7: widely available, we will be throughout our social media channels 464 00:23:21,200 --> 00:23:25,560 Speaker 7: publishing highlights throughout the tournament. We're working with a number 465 00:23:25,800 --> 00:23:29,679 Speaker 7: of partners to distribute those and you drive awareness of them. 466 00:23:29,800 --> 00:23:32,800 Speaker 7: So the big social media platforms, including TikTok, who we 467 00:23:32,880 --> 00:23:36,320 Speaker 7: recently announced a bit of a strategic partnership with around 468 00:23:36,320 --> 00:23:39,679 Speaker 7: this tournament, but also more traditional publishing groups will be 469 00:23:39,680 --> 00:23:42,680 Speaker 7: providing with highlights and clips, you know, really to drive 470 00:23:42,680 --> 00:23:44,800 Speaker 7: the excitement and to drive people back to watch the 471 00:23:44,840 --> 00:23:49,080 Speaker 7: live games on the design platform as well. So we're 472 00:23:49,080 --> 00:23:52,040 Speaker 7: a very digital company and we've always thought about sport 473 00:23:52,400 --> 00:23:55,600 Speaker 7: both on our platform but it extended onto social platforms 474 00:23:55,640 --> 00:23:58,960 Speaker 7: to reach fans wherever they're consuming pe. 475 00:23:59,080 --> 00:24:02,080 Speaker 8: As we wrap up here, is there any sort of 476 00:24:02,680 --> 00:24:05,800 Speaker 8: bar or metrics you're looking at that you have now 477 00:24:06,080 --> 00:24:08,560 Speaker 8: for fans in the US, for you know that you 478 00:24:09,040 --> 00:24:12,200 Speaker 8: want to have growth at the end of this tournament, 479 00:24:12,440 --> 00:24:13,840 Speaker 8: that you're looking at metric wise. 480 00:24:15,040 --> 00:24:15,840 Speaker 9: Yes, for us, I mean. 481 00:24:15,760 --> 00:24:18,679 Speaker 7: It's it's very important how many new registered customers we 482 00:24:18,720 --> 00:24:21,399 Speaker 7: get who download our app and experience it for the 483 00:24:21,440 --> 00:24:25,600 Speaker 7: first time. Obviously, the audience figures for the for the 484 00:24:25,600 --> 00:24:28,840 Speaker 7: games themselves are important, and as you asked earlier, you 485 00:24:28,880 --> 00:24:31,440 Speaker 7: know we will have follow on content. So for us, 486 00:24:32,280 --> 00:24:35,639 Speaker 7: retaining people into the app is important as well, and 487 00:24:35,680 --> 00:24:37,560 Speaker 7: we just think this is a massive opportunity for de 488 00:24:37,640 --> 00:24:41,679 Speaker 7: Zonne to be installed on more smart TVs, more mobile 489 00:24:41,760 --> 00:24:44,479 Speaker 7: phones and for fans to see you know, what we 490 00:24:44,520 --> 00:24:48,119 Speaker 7: can do because we're quite unique as the you know, 491 00:24:48,280 --> 00:24:51,160 Speaker 7: a sports app that is purely dedicated sorry, a streaming 492 00:24:51,200 --> 00:24:53,320 Speaker 7: app that is purely dedicated to sport. 493 00:24:53,920 --> 00:24:54,840 Speaker 9: But yes, we'll look at the. 494 00:24:54,800 --> 00:24:59,520 Speaker 7: Numbers at the end and hopefully we'll have significantly more 495 00:24:59,560 --> 00:25:02,680 Speaker 7: customers registered with us than before when we started. 496 00:25:03,280 --> 00:25:06,760 Speaker 2: That was the CEO of Growth Markets for the Zone, 497 00:25:06,800 --> 00:25:10,280 Speaker 2: Pete Oliver, speaking with our own Vanessa Pernomo. Up next, 498 00:25:10,320 --> 00:25:13,359 Speaker 2: the latest episode of the Deal with Alex Rodriguez and 499 00:25:13,480 --> 00:25:16,520 Speaker 2: Jason Kelly is out and features none other than NBA 500 00:25:16,680 --> 00:25:20,680 Speaker 2: legend and entrepreneur Magic Johnson. We'll talk with Jason about 501 00:25:20,680 --> 00:25:23,919 Speaker 2: the show and hear a little of their conversation. Next, 502 00:25:24,240 --> 00:25:27,640 Speaker 2: I'm Michael Barr. You are listening to the Bloomberg Business 503 00:25:27,640 --> 00:25:30,359 Speaker 2: of Sports from Bloomberger Radio around the world. 504 00:25:34,280 --> 00:25:38,240 Speaker 1: This is Bloomberg Business of Sports from Bloomberg Radio. 505 00:25:39,560 --> 00:25:41,919 Speaker 2: Thanks for joining us on the Bloomberg Business of Sports, 506 00:25:41,960 --> 00:25:44,040 Speaker 2: where we explored the big money issues in the world 507 00:25:44,119 --> 00:25:47,359 Speaker 2: of sports. I'm Michael Barr along with Damian Sasauer and 508 00:25:47,480 --> 00:25:51,520 Speaker 2: Vanessa Pernomo. The latest edition of The Deal with Alex 509 00:25:51,600 --> 00:25:55,119 Speaker 2: Rodriguez and Jason Kelly is out and it features NBA 510 00:25:55,280 --> 00:25:58,800 Speaker 2: legend Magic Johnson, and here now to talk to us 511 00:25:58,880 --> 00:26:03,800 Speaker 2: about their conversation our friend of the show, Bloomberg Originals 512 00:26:03,840 --> 00:26:09,199 Speaker 2: Chief correspondent, Jason Kelly. Jason, Welcome to the Bloomberg Business 513 00:26:09,200 --> 00:26:10,400 Speaker 2: of Sports. I love you man. 514 00:26:10,840 --> 00:26:13,480 Speaker 10: Great to be here. Always good to get at my 515 00:26:13,600 --> 00:26:15,000 Speaker 10: favorite hype man, Michael Barr. 516 00:26:17,400 --> 00:26:22,560 Speaker 2: Well, you had a conversation with Irving Magic Johnson, and 517 00:26:23,040 --> 00:26:25,760 Speaker 2: you guys talked about a lot lots of business of sports. 518 00:26:25,800 --> 00:26:26,520 Speaker 2: What do you talk about? 519 00:26:26,600 --> 00:26:28,680 Speaker 10: Yeah, So, I mean this was a really special one 520 00:26:29,000 --> 00:26:32,160 Speaker 10: for both Alex and myself. I would argue even more 521 00:26:32,200 --> 00:26:36,800 Speaker 10: special for Alex because he credits Magic. He did it 522 00:26:36,840 --> 00:26:39,560 Speaker 10: on stage. We filmed this at the Milk and Global 523 00:26:40,560 --> 00:26:43,720 Speaker 10: Conference Milking Institute Global Conference out in Beverly Hills just 524 00:26:43,880 --> 00:26:47,200 Speaker 10: a month or so ago. He basically said, straight up, 525 00:26:47,240 --> 00:26:50,920 Speaker 10: Alex did that. Alex does not become what he is today. 526 00:26:50,960 --> 00:26:53,119 Speaker 10: He's not an owner of the Minnesota Timberwolves and Linx 527 00:26:53,359 --> 00:26:56,080 Speaker 10: were it not for the advice he got from Magic Johnson. 528 00:26:56,359 --> 00:26:59,320 Speaker 10: You know, Magic really set the template for so many 529 00:26:59,400 --> 00:27:03,879 Speaker 10: athletes who came after him, male and female, in terms 530 00:27:03,880 --> 00:27:06,840 Speaker 10: of building empires after they leave the court of the field. 531 00:27:07,000 --> 00:27:07,360 Speaker 2: That's right. 532 00:27:07,400 --> 00:27:09,360 Speaker 4: I mean, we know about Magic's legacy on the court, 533 00:27:09,400 --> 00:27:11,880 Speaker 4: So tell us a little bit about the business endeavors 534 00:27:11,880 --> 00:27:13,280 Speaker 4: that Magic is. I mean, we know some of the 535 00:27:13,359 --> 00:27:16,120 Speaker 4: high profile he is that owns the Dodgers and the Commander. 536 00:27:16,480 --> 00:27:18,240 Speaker 4: Talk to us about, you know, how he got to start, 537 00:27:18,320 --> 00:27:20,640 Speaker 4: you know, like, talk to us about some of his 538 00:27:20,800 --> 00:27:22,080 Speaker 4: finest moments in business. 539 00:27:22,200 --> 00:27:27,199 Speaker 10: Yeah, I mean, his his big breakthrough and this is 540 00:27:27,240 --> 00:27:30,800 Speaker 10: one of the lessons he taught Alex. And Alex has 541 00:27:30,800 --> 00:27:33,040 Speaker 10: talked about it since I've gotten to know Alex. You know, 542 00:27:33,040 --> 00:27:35,359 Speaker 10: in the past few years, Alex always points back to 543 00:27:35,400 --> 00:27:39,480 Speaker 10: Magic and Magic's advice to Alex, which he has really employed, 544 00:27:39,680 --> 00:27:42,320 Speaker 10: which both of them employed, is basically a lot of 545 00:27:42,359 --> 00:27:45,960 Speaker 10: people want to meet you, and they're they're open to 546 00:27:46,000 --> 00:27:48,920 Speaker 10: being in business with you if you're willing to do 547 00:27:48,960 --> 00:27:52,440 Speaker 10: the work and to follow up and to really execute. 548 00:27:52,480 --> 00:27:55,119 Speaker 10: And that's what he did. And the main thing that 549 00:27:55,520 --> 00:28:00,560 Speaker 10: that Magic really saw was opportunities in community that he 550 00:28:00,640 --> 00:28:04,600 Speaker 10: was familiar with, you know, in you know, downtown Los 551 00:28:04,640 --> 00:28:07,440 Speaker 10: Angeles and beyond, you know, parts of cities that were 552 00:28:07,520 --> 00:28:11,680 Speaker 10: largely ignored. And so that's where his movie theater chain 553 00:28:11,840 --> 00:28:16,240 Speaker 10: started and showed immediate success in terms of getting an 554 00:28:16,280 --> 00:28:19,520 Speaker 10: audience and being profitable. And he used that same playbook 555 00:28:20,200 --> 00:28:24,040 Speaker 10: to convince Howard Schultz, the founder and longtime CEO of Starbucks, 556 00:28:24,400 --> 00:28:27,879 Speaker 10: to allow Magic to be a franchisee and to open 557 00:28:28,000 --> 00:28:32,760 Speaker 10: more than one hundred and fifty locations, again in urban cores, 558 00:28:33,280 --> 00:28:36,239 Speaker 10: and that proved to be, not surprisingly, a really good 559 00:28:36,280 --> 00:28:38,200 Speaker 10: business for Starbucks and by the way, a really good 560 00:28:38,200 --> 00:28:38,880 Speaker 10: business for Magic. 561 00:28:38,920 --> 00:28:39,280 Speaker 9: Johnson. 562 00:28:39,640 --> 00:28:41,880 Speaker 2: See, Vanessa, you can do this because you're a sports 563 00:28:41,880 --> 00:28:44,760 Speaker 2: figure and you just need to get some more coin. 564 00:28:44,920 --> 00:28:46,800 Speaker 6: And never tillion dollars. 565 00:28:46,920 --> 00:28:48,040 Speaker 8: I think, I'm. 566 00:28:50,320 --> 00:28:53,880 Speaker 2: I mean it's to me, it's I see the bridge 567 00:28:54,400 --> 00:28:59,240 Speaker 2: from a lot of sports figures now today moving into 568 00:28:59,560 --> 00:29:06,320 Speaker 2: different business ventures, whether it's involving private equity or whatever. 569 00:29:06,520 --> 00:29:09,760 Speaker 10: Yeah, well, and I think that you're onto something, they're Michael. 570 00:29:09,800 --> 00:29:13,400 Speaker 10: And the key element that's different is that, you know, 571 00:29:13,440 --> 00:29:16,120 Speaker 10: back in the day, and this is where Magic was 572 00:29:16,360 --> 00:29:21,000 Speaker 10: really transformative and it's now commonplace, but it wasn't then 573 00:29:21,440 --> 00:29:24,160 Speaker 10: this notion of yeah, I can endorse a product, and 574 00:29:24,160 --> 00:29:27,320 Speaker 10: obviously he did, you know, famously with Converse and you know, 575 00:29:27,440 --> 00:29:29,600 Speaker 10: chose them and that was a huge deal that he 576 00:29:29,640 --> 00:29:33,840 Speaker 10: didn't choose Nike. And then Michael Jordan did. One of 577 00:29:33,840 --> 00:29:37,760 Speaker 10: the things he really understood from an early from an 578 00:29:37,800 --> 00:29:41,400 Speaker 10: early age, and Alex has really embraced his too, is 579 00:29:41,440 --> 00:29:44,320 Speaker 10: the importance of ownership versus endorsing. You know, when you're 580 00:29:44,400 --> 00:29:47,080 Speaker 10: endorsing something, it's like, okay, cool, I'll wear your shoe, 581 00:29:47,240 --> 00:29:49,880 Speaker 10: I'll talk about your product, I'll do some commercials and 582 00:29:49,920 --> 00:29:51,360 Speaker 10: then you get paid and then you move on to 583 00:29:51,400 --> 00:29:53,480 Speaker 10: the next thing. But when you have ownership, you have 584 00:29:53,520 --> 00:29:57,000 Speaker 10: a voice, and you have a literal stake in the success, 585 00:29:57,400 --> 00:30:00,520 Speaker 10: and candidly, you can make a lot more money doing that. 586 00:30:00,640 --> 00:30:03,239 Speaker 10: You know, Magic Johnson's a billionaire, you know, and he 587 00:30:03,360 --> 00:30:05,880 Speaker 10: is the billionaire. He is a billionaire on the backs 588 00:30:05,880 --> 00:30:07,960 Speaker 10: of being able to be an owner. You know, he 589 00:30:08,040 --> 00:30:11,000 Speaker 10: builds these businesses that allows him to, you know, quite 590 00:30:11,040 --> 00:30:15,480 Speaker 10: literally leverage himself, you know, into all these ownership positions 591 00:30:15,520 --> 00:30:18,240 Speaker 10: where you know, as you said, Damien, whether it's the 592 00:30:18,280 --> 00:30:21,720 Speaker 10: Los Angeles Dodgers, I believe he's an owner of the 593 00:30:21,720 --> 00:30:24,560 Speaker 10: the La Sparks, the WNBA team. 594 00:30:24,640 --> 00:30:25,920 Speaker 4: He was part of the same to get that bought 595 00:30:25,920 --> 00:30:27,960 Speaker 4: the Williams brook Savings Bank tower. That's all his building 596 00:30:27,960 --> 00:30:29,880 Speaker 4: in Brooklyn. I mean, that's a seventy million dollar tower 597 00:30:29,920 --> 00:30:32,360 Speaker 4: that they gutted, renovated and flipped. I mean, I don't 598 00:30:32,360 --> 00:30:33,800 Speaker 4: know if that's really what happened, but I mean the 599 00:30:33,800 --> 00:30:36,960 Speaker 4: reality is, I mean he has built buildings. This is 600 00:30:37,120 --> 00:30:39,760 Speaker 4: I mean, he is beyond just being a min already 601 00:30:39,800 --> 00:30:42,240 Speaker 4: investor in some of these sports franchises like the Lakers, Dodgers, 602 00:30:42,280 --> 00:30:45,080 Speaker 4: and the Commanders or even you know, the Starbucks franchise. 603 00:30:45,160 --> 00:30:47,080 Speaker 4: Is that he again, he owned one hundred and fifty 604 00:30:47,120 --> 00:30:48,560 Speaker 4: of them. I don't know if he owns them any longer, 605 00:30:48,560 --> 00:30:49,120 Speaker 4: does he is. 606 00:30:49,040 --> 00:30:52,440 Speaker 10: He doesn't, But he's an empire builder to your point, empires, I. 607 00:30:52,360 --> 00:30:55,680 Speaker 4: Mean It's unbelievable. And so what comes next? I guess 608 00:30:55,760 --> 00:30:57,600 Speaker 4: did you ask him that? I mean, what's he into now? 609 00:30:57,680 --> 00:30:59,400 Speaker 10: I mean we did talk about that. I mean, I 610 00:30:59,440 --> 00:31:00,480 Speaker 10: think he is. 611 00:31:00,800 --> 00:31:01,000 Speaker 6: You know. 612 00:31:01,000 --> 00:31:03,480 Speaker 10: One of the things that was another seminal moment for 613 00:31:03,560 --> 00:31:07,120 Speaker 10: him that he talks about in the show is his 614 00:31:07,400 --> 00:31:10,840 Speaker 10: ability to not just invest his own money, but invest 615 00:31:11,000 --> 00:31:13,680 Speaker 10: money on other people's behalf. And so he talked about 616 00:31:13,920 --> 00:31:18,880 Speaker 10: the processed exactly, and the process of going to CalPERS, 617 00:31:18,920 --> 00:31:20,840 Speaker 10: you know, which is obviously one of the above biggest 618 00:31:20,880 --> 00:31:24,120 Speaker 10: public pension funds in the country and really in the world, 619 00:31:24,560 --> 00:31:28,200 Speaker 10: and convincing them to back him, and it took a 620 00:31:28,200 --> 00:31:30,640 Speaker 10: long time, and they first gave me a little bit 621 00:31:30,640 --> 00:31:31,040 Speaker 10: of money. 622 00:31:31,240 --> 00:31:31,680 Speaker 8: You know. 623 00:31:31,840 --> 00:31:34,080 Speaker 4: That's just your sacramento with the guys at CalPERS. I mean, 624 00:31:34,160 --> 00:31:37,400 Speaker 4: believe me. I mean, and so that's unbelievable, and he 625 00:31:37,520 --> 00:31:40,560 Speaker 4: really enjoys that process. I mean, I hate that process. 626 00:31:40,600 --> 00:31:42,760 Speaker 4: I mean, Jason, I hate trying to raise money from 627 00:31:42,760 --> 00:31:44,960 Speaker 4: big institutional investors. I remember it. I have the scars 628 00:31:45,000 --> 00:31:47,840 Speaker 4: to show for it. I mean, Magic Johnson's a special character. 629 00:31:47,880 --> 00:31:50,440 Speaker 4: If he thinks that's a fun thing to do, well, 630 00:31:50,560 --> 00:31:53,360 Speaker 4: I mean, I think amazing. I think he feels I mean, 631 00:31:53,360 --> 00:31:55,240 Speaker 4: this is very clear in talking to him. He feels 632 00:31:55,240 --> 00:31:58,320 Speaker 4: a sense of mission. You know, he feels that he 633 00:31:58,760 --> 00:32:02,400 Speaker 4: was given this gift of athleticism. He is also I mean, 634 00:32:02,720 --> 00:32:05,040 Speaker 4: this will come as no surprise to anyone. He is 635 00:32:05,080 --> 00:32:10,240 Speaker 4: one of the warmest, most enthusiastic, just joyous human beings. 636 00:32:10,360 --> 00:32:12,360 Speaker 4: And you know, I will tell you, you know, his 637 00:32:12,400 --> 00:32:14,720 Speaker 4: mental acuity is all I mean, it's still there. 638 00:32:14,760 --> 00:32:17,040 Speaker 10: I mean, and his EQ is off the charts too, 639 00:32:17,080 --> 00:32:20,880 Speaker 10: you know, just he just exudes this this warmth and 640 00:32:21,000 --> 00:32:25,760 Speaker 10: joy that I've almost never seen and you're just watching 641 00:32:25,840 --> 00:32:28,800 Speaker 10: and one of the great moments of all of this was, 642 00:32:28,960 --> 00:32:30,920 Speaker 10: you know, we're filming this in front of you know, 643 00:32:30,920 --> 00:32:35,840 Speaker 10: a few hundred people and just seeing other human beings 644 00:32:35,960 --> 00:32:38,200 Speaker 10: react to this. By the way, he is a massive 645 00:32:38,280 --> 00:32:41,080 Speaker 10: human being. Like I'm imagining like this guy coming down the. 646 00:32:40,960 --> 00:32:41,920 Speaker 2: Court six eight. 647 00:32:41,960 --> 00:32:43,560 Speaker 4: I mean, like, and let's just think about this. You 648 00:32:43,560 --> 00:32:46,880 Speaker 4: were at the Milk and Institute. That's he's an Lai 649 00:32:47,000 --> 00:32:49,000 Speaker 4: cut totally. I mean, like were you just like, were 650 00:32:49,000 --> 00:32:52,440 Speaker 4: people still like when he holds court, everyone stops. 651 00:32:52,160 --> 00:32:54,520 Speaker 10: Oh yeah, this c's part I mean, and then they 652 00:32:54,600 --> 00:32:56,560 Speaker 10: converge because they just want to get a piece of him. 653 00:32:57,200 --> 00:32:59,480 Speaker 2: Thank you Jason for stopping by. Now let's hear a 654 00:32:59,560 --> 00:33:03,320 Speaker 2: portion of conversation. It's The Deal with Alex Rodriguez and 655 00:33:03,400 --> 00:33:06,040 Speaker 2: Jason Kelly speaking this week with Magic Johnson. 656 00:33:06,080 --> 00:33:08,960 Speaker 10: All Right, so I'm gonna say just you know, as 657 00:33:08,960 --> 00:33:13,280 Speaker 10: a human being, this is exciting for me. But my excitement, 658 00:33:13,360 --> 00:33:18,120 Speaker 10: I'm telling you, is nothing compared to this guys. Alex 659 00:33:18,200 --> 00:33:21,720 Speaker 10: Rodriguez is not He does not swoon. He does not 660 00:33:22,000 --> 00:33:24,000 Speaker 10: you know, be like, oh, I'm so excited about this. 661 00:33:25,040 --> 00:33:28,400 Speaker 10: He's beside himself right now. All right, So I'm Jason Kelly, 662 00:33:28,400 --> 00:33:29,360 Speaker 10: this is Alex Rodriguez. 663 00:33:29,400 --> 00:33:30,280 Speaker 5: We ho home embarrassed. 664 00:33:30,360 --> 00:33:32,000 Speaker 2: Yeah, oh just wait. 665 00:33:33,560 --> 00:33:35,600 Speaker 10: We host to show a Bloomberg called The Deal, and 666 00:33:35,720 --> 00:33:38,920 Speaker 10: we couldn't be more excited to have you here with us. 667 00:33:38,960 --> 00:33:40,360 Speaker 3: Magic, So thank you, thank you. 668 00:33:40,480 --> 00:33:41,240 Speaker 2: I appreciate that. 669 00:33:41,520 --> 00:33:43,480 Speaker 10: So what's so interesting is there are a lot of 670 00:33:43,520 --> 00:33:46,360 Speaker 10: fans in this room of both of these guys, but 671 00:33:46,520 --> 00:33:49,480 Speaker 10: there is a very special relationship between these two. It's 672 00:33:49,480 --> 00:33:51,960 Speaker 10: so interesting. As Alex and I have been doing this show, 673 00:33:52,560 --> 00:33:55,920 Speaker 10: we have had a north star and I know Alex 674 00:33:55,960 --> 00:33:58,640 Speaker 10: has a north star in Magic and this is a 675 00:33:58,920 --> 00:34:01,160 Speaker 10: this is a relationship that goes back a long way 676 00:34:01,680 --> 00:34:05,880 Speaker 10: to a young Seattle Mariner who was essentially cold calling 677 00:34:05,920 --> 00:34:09,239 Speaker 10: heroes and trying to learn about business. Alex, I want 678 00:34:09,280 --> 00:34:10,800 Speaker 10: to I want you to take us back it happening 679 00:34:10,840 --> 00:34:14,719 Speaker 10: here in Los Angeles, to what you took from what 680 00:34:14,840 --> 00:34:17,200 Speaker 10: was meant to be thirty minutes turned you into a 681 00:34:17,200 --> 00:34:21,880 Speaker 10: few hours. You still have the notes. What's the takeaway 682 00:34:21,880 --> 00:34:22,360 Speaker 10: from magic? 683 00:34:22,520 --> 00:34:22,719 Speaker 2: Yeah? 684 00:34:22,719 --> 00:34:25,920 Speaker 5: Thanks Jason, and thanks everybody for being here. I'm a 685 00:34:26,000 --> 00:34:29,520 Speaker 5: huge believer in the power of mentorship. So I called 686 00:34:29,719 --> 00:34:34,680 Speaker 5: lonra Rosen, who's a longtime partner of Irvin, and I said, 687 00:34:34,760 --> 00:34:37,120 Speaker 5: is there any way now we're with the Mariners, there's 688 00:34:37,239 --> 00:34:39,799 Speaker 5: like twenty five, twenty seven years ago. I'm just a 689 00:34:39,840 --> 00:34:42,439 Speaker 5: young kid, twenty two to twenty three, and I said, long, 690 00:34:42,440 --> 00:34:45,279 Speaker 5: can I get thirty minutes with the guy? And I'm 691 00:34:45,280 --> 00:34:47,239 Speaker 5: thinking like, yeah, maybe in a couple of years. He's like, hey, 692 00:34:47,320 --> 00:34:51,279 Speaker 5: how's tomorrow night. I'm like, bet, I'm there. So we 693 00:34:51,320 --> 00:34:53,560 Speaker 5: sat in a room it was supposed to be thirty minutes. 694 00:34:53,680 --> 00:34:55,440 Speaker 5: That led to him was a three hour dinner where 695 00:34:55,440 --> 00:34:57,880 Speaker 5: I have like nine pages of notes and there's no 696 00:34:58,040 --> 00:35:00,400 Speaker 5: question in my mind that Irvin is impact to me 697 00:35:00,440 --> 00:35:03,000 Speaker 5: and without that dinner. Because here's a man of color, 698 00:35:03,280 --> 00:35:05,480 Speaker 5: here's a guy that was a Hall of Fame basketball player. 699 00:35:05,719 --> 00:35:07,880 Speaker 5: He comes from humble beginnings, all things that I can 700 00:35:07,960 --> 00:35:11,160 Speaker 5: relate with. And I said, if Magic can do it, 701 00:35:11,320 --> 00:35:13,479 Speaker 5: why can't I. So anyways, I wouldn't own a team 702 00:35:13,480 --> 00:35:15,640 Speaker 5: without Magic. I wouldn't have a Rod Korp without Irvin. 703 00:35:15,680 --> 00:35:17,000 Speaker 5: And I just want to say thank you, and I 704 00:35:17,040 --> 00:35:19,200 Speaker 5: wanted to share that story with you. No, thank you. 705 00:35:19,480 --> 00:35:22,080 Speaker 10: Well, let's talk about that, because what you have done 706 00:35:22,239 --> 00:35:24,360 Speaker 10: over the course of the last you know, thirty forty years, 707 00:35:24,440 --> 00:35:28,400 Speaker 10: is a series of unbelievable deals and one of the 708 00:35:28,400 --> 00:35:30,799 Speaker 10: most interesting things, and Alex and I talk about this 709 00:35:30,840 --> 00:35:33,600 Speaker 10: all the time, is your movement to ownership. You know, 710 00:35:33,680 --> 00:35:35,719 Speaker 10: you have a partner, Mark I here in the front 711 00:35:35,760 --> 00:35:38,880 Speaker 10: row with the Washington Commanders. We spent some time with 712 00:35:38,960 --> 00:35:42,239 Speaker 10: your partner, Josh Harris last week in Miami. That's a 713 00:35:42,239 --> 00:35:45,680 Speaker 10: seminal deal for the NFL. I would argue it's a 714 00:35:45,680 --> 00:35:49,279 Speaker 10: seminal deal for you. Would you agree? And how do 715 00:35:49,360 --> 00:35:51,400 Speaker 10: you put that in the context of your deal making? 716 00:35:51,520 --> 00:35:55,560 Speaker 3: No, it's the greatest deal I've ever done. I mean, listen, first, 717 00:35:55,600 --> 00:35:58,320 Speaker 3: as a kid I'm already a football fan. I played football, 718 00:35:59,160 --> 00:36:01,040 Speaker 3: but I knew I was better of that basketball, so 719 00:36:01,120 --> 00:36:05,040 Speaker 3: I gave it up in high school to concentrate on basketball. 720 00:36:05,520 --> 00:36:08,080 Speaker 3: But to know that, I've been a big fan of 721 00:36:08,120 --> 00:36:11,440 Speaker 3: the NFL, not knowing that a man of color could 722 00:36:11,520 --> 00:36:14,120 Speaker 3: actually become an owner in the NFL. 723 00:36:13,760 --> 00:36:14,399 Speaker 2: But I had. 724 00:36:15,480 --> 00:36:17,560 Speaker 3: Josh Harris said, hey, I want you to be a 725 00:36:17,600 --> 00:36:21,880 Speaker 3: part of this ownership group. We had went after the 726 00:36:21,920 --> 00:36:25,239 Speaker 3: Denver Broncos, but a young man for Walmark said, I 727 00:36:25,280 --> 00:36:27,640 Speaker 3: don't care what you bid, I'm gonna outbid you, so 728 00:36:28,000 --> 00:36:32,040 Speaker 3: you might well just keep your money right and Josh's 729 00:36:32,080 --> 00:36:37,440 Speaker 3: I said, okay, we give. But the team we're supposed 730 00:36:37,440 --> 00:36:40,680 Speaker 3: to own, we own. Why did I say that? Josh 731 00:36:40,760 --> 00:36:44,080 Speaker 3: Harris is from d C, so he watched the Redskins 732 00:36:44,600 --> 00:36:48,479 Speaker 3: as a boy. Mark Iron is from d C, so 733 00:36:48,600 --> 00:36:52,000 Speaker 3: he watched the Redskins as a boy. Mitch Rails is 734 00:36:52,040 --> 00:36:56,959 Speaker 3: from d C. So now they got men who grew 735 00:36:57,040 --> 00:37:01,359 Speaker 3: up loving this team who now become the owners and 736 00:37:01,400 --> 00:37:05,319 Speaker 3: the gatekeepers. And I think, and I knew that we 737 00:37:05,320 --> 00:37:07,680 Speaker 3: were going to do a fantastic job, and then for 738 00:37:07,840 --> 00:37:11,239 Speaker 3: them to bring me in, it's a blessing for me, 739 00:37:11,800 --> 00:37:15,680 Speaker 3: but also for men of color, but also former athletes 740 00:37:15,719 --> 00:37:18,560 Speaker 3: as well. It shows them that we can go from 741 00:37:18,640 --> 00:37:21,479 Speaker 3: the court to the boardroom. And I want to thank 742 00:37:21,640 --> 00:37:24,160 Speaker 3: Mark because he's here. And look where we when we 743 00:37:24,200 --> 00:37:27,120 Speaker 3: bought the team. Look where we are today, you know, 744 00:37:27,640 --> 00:37:31,120 Speaker 3: and it's going up and up and up. And I'm 745 00:37:31,120 --> 00:37:33,240 Speaker 3: so happy to be a part of the ownership group. 746 00:37:33,960 --> 00:37:37,520 Speaker 2: That's our own. Jason Kelly, along with Alex Rodriguez, speaking 747 00:37:37,520 --> 00:37:40,480 Speaker 2: to Magic Johnson on the latest edition of The Deal 748 00:37:40,560 --> 00:37:44,560 Speaker 2: with Alex Rodriguez and Jason Kelly. Head over to Bloomberg 749 00:37:44,680 --> 00:37:48,960 Speaker 2: dot com Slash the Dash Deal to learn more and 750 00:37:49,239 --> 00:37:53,000 Speaker 2: find it on your favorite podcast platform that does it. 751 00:37:53,080 --> 00:37:55,880 Speaker 2: For this week's edition of The Bloomberg Business of Sports 752 00:37:55,960 --> 00:37:59,919 Speaker 2: for MIKEA colleagues Damien Sassauer and Vanessa Perdomo, I'm Michael Barr. 753 00:38:00,120 --> 00:38:02,600 Speaker 2: Tune in again next week for the latest on the 754 00:38:02,600 --> 00:38:05,040 Speaker 2: stories moving big old money in the world of sports, 755 00:38:05,280 --> 00:38:08,239 Speaker 2: and don't forget to catch our podcasts on all your 756 00:38:08,440 --> 00:38:12,800 Speaker 2: podcast platforms. You're listening to The Bloomberg Business of Sports 757 00:38:12,840 --> 00:38:14,760 Speaker 2: Bloomberg Radio around the world.