Love or loathe it, legal sports betting is here with a vengeance.
There has been a flood of news about teams, leagues and sports wagering businesses announcing relationships. Last week, it was gambling company Bally’s and TV station giant Sinclair formally rolling out their deal to rebrand the Sinclair-owned Fox Sports regional sports networks (RSNs) under the Bally’s name.
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To help make sense of the name change, the sports betting aspects, and what Sinclair ownership of the channels means, here’s what we know so far.
An easy one: What’s happening?
Under a naming rights deal, the Fox Sports regional channels become Bally Sports later this year. For example, Fox Sports Detroit will become Bally Sports Detroit for Tigers, Red Wings and Pistons fans who watch those channels through their local cable or digital providers. This was long expected because Sinclair bought the channels in 2019. Bally’s sports wagering technology will be incorporated into the deal.
How many major-league teams are on these channels?
42 teams across MLB, NBA and NHL. The map below shows the teams, branding and channels. Some of the channels also show college sports, MLS, WNBA and other sports content.
EXCLUSIVE: @WeAreSinclair and Bally's today will unveil the new names and logos for their 19 regional sports networks.
As part of the rebrand, Sinclair will shut down part-time RSNs FS Tennessee and FS Carolinas (@Ourand_SBJ).
Free to read: https://t.co/25WS5GgfrU pic.twitter.com/r0OzHWyH2X
— Sports Business Journal (@sbjsbd) January 27, 2021
What does the Sinclair-Bally’s deal mean for games on my local Fox Sports station?
In the next few months, the Fox Sports name and branding will be replaced with the name, logo and colors of Bally’s, a Rhode Island-based gambling company. There are no reported changes for on-air or other personnel. While details haven’t been disclosed, expect to see gambling-related content in and around live games, both broadcast and digital. And it’s not just Bally’s: Teams and leagues have regularly been announcing their own wagering tech, data and content relationships with sports betting companies. For example, the PointsBet virtual logo will be visible on-ice at Little Caesars Arena during Red Wings game broadcasts.
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Will Sinclair shutter any RSNs as part of the rebrand?
Yes. This is how Sinclair explained it in a statement: “Fox Sports Carolinas and Fox Sports Tennessee will be sunset to streamline program offerings. All live games and original programming – namely Nashville Predators and Carolina Hurricanes content – that previously aired under those brands, will reside onBally Sports South(previously Fox Sports South) andBally Sports Southeast(previously Fox Sports Southeast), the two full-time networks that service the greater region.”
Will any station’s geographical names change?
Two. Prime Ticket (LA Clippers, Angels, and Kings, and Anaheim Ducks) becomes Bally Sports SoCal. SportsTime Ohio (Cleveland MLB team) becomes Bally Sports Great Lakes.
Will all the RSNs get the Bally’s name?
No. Sinclair co-owns the YES Network (Yankees, Nets, Liberty, NYCFC) and Marquee Sports Network (Cubs), and those stations will maintain their current names. It’s unclear if any Bally’s gaming content will be deployed across those two networks but some sort of betting stuff will be.
Sinclair also owns the Tennis Channel and Stadium. Will they get Bally-fied?
They will not change names, but Bally’s can integrate into content on those channels, along with Sinclair’s STIRR direct-to-consumer live/on-demand streaming app, and Sinclair’s almost 200 non-sports TV stations. What that might look like isn’t yet known.
And the Fox Sports GO app?
Sinclair CFO Lucy Rutishauser during an investment conference virtual Q&A last month outlined some details about the app plans. “We are in the process of developing a new world-class sports app that will replace the Fox Sports GO app. We are still on Fox’s app and we have to transition off of that. We expect to launch our app this spring,” she said. “The viewing experience will be significantly better. It’ll be enhanced, it’ll be personalized, interactive. It’ll have new features, new capabilities, more content around sports, sports betting, the super fan, sports news, as well as it will have free-to-play, rewards, community-based, gamification, stats. These will occur over time. They’re not all going to be available Day 1.”
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What is Sinclair?
It began as a local radio station group in Maryland in the 1950s. What today is formally Sinclair Broadcast Group Inc. was founded as Chesapeake Television Corp. in 1971 (taking the Sinclair name in 1985) and is the country’s second-largest owner and operator of local TV stations. It’s traded on the NASDAQ under SBGI. It also owns the Ring of Honor wrestling promotion. Sinclair has been the subject of ongoing criticism for the conservative bent occasionally witnessed in its news programming and corporate-mandated on-air editorials. The sports channels and live games are largely devoid of political content, but how each handles coverage of social justice initiatives by leagues, teams and players appears to be channel by channel – if at all.
Are there consumer issues with the Sinclair RSNs?
Of course. Aside from the ancient complaints about play-by-play or color commentators that occur with every network in history, the chief issue is that Sinclair hasn’t reached deals for its RSNs to be available on Hulu, Sling, FuboTV and YouTube TV. Talks remain ongoing.
Why is Sinclair getting into sports wagering?
To grow the size of its audiences, to make more money, and to get into the burgeoning legal sports betting space that’s been legal for the past couple of years. “If you ask why sports betting is important to us, it’s for a couple reasons. Research shows that when people bet on an event, even if it’s free to play, they will watch those events. These events that we’re talking about are carried by our numerous sports assets, whether it’s on the broadcast side, whether it’s on the RSN side,” Rutishauser said. “The other thing we liked is that the Bally’s partnership didn’t preclude us from transacting with other sports betting companies.”
Why Bally’s specifically?
Sinclair said it had talks with a number of sports betting companies but ultimately went with Bally’s. “There were a lot of aspects to this deal that provided flexibility and upside for us. … Bally’s brings a recognized brand. They bring sports betting technology and market-access footprint. The partnership is really focused on creating unrivaled sports gamification content on a national scale,” Rutishauser said. “Our assets … would drive value for them and drive users to their platforms. Their tech stack integrations, database, marketing integrations would benefit our assets and drive viewership on our side.”
Does the Bally’s deal mean I can bet on games I watch through my RSN?
Eventually. Bally’s and Sinclair are working out the technology and how it will operate. You’ll have to check locally to see when it’s available for you.
How much did Sinclair pay for the RSNs?
Sinclair paid $9.8 billion in May 2018 for Fox Sports’ 22 regional sports networks then owned by The Walt Disney Co. And because Disney already owned ESPN, federal antitrust regulators required the RSN sale as part of the approval for Disney’s $71.3 billion acquisition of 21st Century Fox’s entertainment assets that included the Fox RSNs.
Are they worth that much?
The value of the RSNs is derived primarily from their local market broadcast rights deals with major-league teams. While Sinclair’s portfolio of traditional TV stations has remained healthy, the pandemic was brutal on Sinclair’s RSN properties because so much live game content was lost. The company in November wrote down the RSN’s value by $4.23 billion – which suggests overpayment. The pandemic also exacerbated the ongoing trend of cord-cutting that has cut into broadcast industry profits. So, while a rename from the Fox Sports moniker was always going to happen, the need for new revenue from the naming rights deal was accelerated.
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How much is Bally’s paying Sinclair for the RSN rebrand?
$85 million over 10 years with a five-year renewal if neither side opts to not renew, according to the New York Post. Bally’s or Sinclair must declare its intent not to renew 18 months before the initial 10-year deal expires. Additionally, the deal allows Sinclair to buy up to almost 30 percent of Bally’s stock based on performance metrics.
Who owns Bally’s?
Bally’s Corp. was founded as Rhode Island-based BLB Investor in 2004 and then became Twin River Worldwide Holdingsin 2011. As its casino and gaming portfolio grew, Twin River’s controlling investor, hedge fund investor Soo Kim of Standard General LC, bought the iconic Bally’s name for a reported $20 million last year from Caesars Entertainment. A rebrand of its properties followed.
The Bally’s name sounds familiar …
It started in the 1930s as Bally Manufacturing, a Chicago maker of pinball machines, and then also slot machines and arcade video games. There later were casinos and a chain of gyms. The name has been licensed and sold in a Byzantine web of business deals. Those are different companies, some defunct, but the names all trace to the pinball company.
How did Bally’s get into online sports gambling?
To get into the space, Bally’s bought Las Vegas-based wagering platform Bet.Works in November for $125 million in a split stock-cash deal. It’s part of a wider strategy to expand the company’s footprint nationally that includes the purchase (some pending) of 14 casinos in 10 states. Bally’s will use Bet.Works’ technology to create a branded sports gambling app much like the public has seen from FanDuel, DraftKings, PointsBet and others. Sinclair will use that technology. Expect to see others license the app tech, too.
Will I be able to use Bally’s sports wagering app?
Bettors will be able to use it where legal, said Adi Dhandhania, Bally’s Corp. vice president of strategy and corporate development, via email.
Didn’t Bally’s buy a DFS company, too?
Yes. In addition to its acquisition of the Bet.Works technology, Bally’s last month spent a reported $90 million in stock to buy San Jose, Calif.-based daily fantasy sports site Monkey Knife Fight, which has about 180,000 users and deals in place with several teams including the LA Chargers and Galaxy. The NFL’s players union has an ownership stake in Monkey Knife Fight, as well. Bally’s said it will incorporate the daily fantasy sports offering with its RSNs.
(Courtesy of Bally’s Corporation, Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc.)
