On the latest Sporticast episode, hosts Scott Soshnick and Eben Novy-Williams discuss some of the biggest sports business stories of the week, including the latest in the Manchester United sale process. The English club’s stock price fell 13% earlier this week amid growing belief that the Glazer family, which has owned the team since 2005, could remain in control moving forward.
There are at least two bidders for the team–British billionaire Jim Ratcliffe and Qatari sheikh Jassim bin Hamad Al Thani–but ESPN reported over the weekend that U.S. hedge fund Elliott Management was interested in investing in the team in an arrangement that could result in the Glazers retaining control.
Owning the team has been a lucrative investment for the family, which assumed control in a leveraged buyout that valued the club at roughly $1.4 billion. The family has taken roughly that exact same amount out of the Red Devils over the past 18 years, according to Sportico‘s analysis of the team finances. That includes stock sale proceeds, dividends and other payments totaling $1.32 billion.
The hosts also touch on the launch of the MLS season. The league is beginning its 10-year, $2.5 billion partnership with Apple, adding a team in St. Louis, and just extended its relationship with Adidas. The longest running partner in league history, Adidas will pay MLS $830 million over the six years from 2025-2030, up from $700 million in the current six-year window.
The hosts also talk Pac-12 media rights, an arbitration fight in Milwaukee, and Ryan Reynolds’s push to buy the Ottawa Senators.
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