While the spotlight this week was on the NHL, who hosted game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals which the Florida Panthers won for the first time in franchise history, and the NBA, who hosted its 78th draft, the NFL made sure it was not forgotten. Two NFL teams are planning monumental stadium renovations - some much needed good news for the league that hopefully can detract a bit of attention from its Sunday Ticket settlement. Investments in the sports industry continue to boom as multiple high-profile individuals expand their investment portfolios.
Shaun White’s Unrivaled Sports acquires minority stake in indoor action sports company Snöbahn.
Cleveland Cavaliers hire Golden State Warriors assistant coach Kenny Atkinson as new head coach. Atkinson was previously head coach of the Brooklyn Nets (2016-2020). The f inal contract is pending.
NBA approved sale of 15% of BSE Global to Julia Koch. BSE Global is the parent company of many entities, including the Brooklyn Nets, Barclays Center, New York Liberty, the Nets’ G-League team (Long Island Nets) and Nets’ NBA 2K League team (Nets GC).
Charlotte approves $800M renovation of Bank of America Stadium, home of the Carolina Panthers NFL franchise. $650M will come from public funds. Construction is expected to start in 2026 and be completed by 2029.
Jacksonville City Council approves an agreement between the Jaguars and the city for a $1.4B renovation of EverBank Stadium. The deal still needs to be approved by the NFL owners when they meet this October. If approved, construction is scheduled to start after the 2025 season and will be finished for the 2028 season. The city will pay for approximately 55% total cost.
Big East signs a 6-year media deal with Fox, NBC and TNT. Financial details to be released.
Steve Cohen’s hedge fund, Point72 Asset Management, L.P. has acquired a 5.5% stake in Sphere Entertainment. Cohen’s (owner of the New York Mets) 1,560,170 million shares include 582,400 shares of Class A Common Stock.
Kirsten Flicker is an associate in the Derivatives and Structured Products Practice Group at Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP. She graduated from Fordham University School of Law in 2021. She can be found on LinkedIn here.