During an early Thursday morning interview on CNBC, Disney CEO Bob Iger ignited a frenzy in the sports world when he stated that essentially, all Disney-owned brands were up for evaluation, including long-time cash cow ESPN.
“Our position in that business is very unique,” said Iger. “We have a great brand. We’ve had a great business and we want to stay in that business. That said, we’re going to be open-minded there too. Not necessarily about spinning ESPN off, but about looking for strategic partners that can either help us with distribution or content. But we want to stay in the sports business.”
Immediately, social media started buzzing about Iger’s comments.
To industry insiders, Iger’s comments aren’t a surprise. Sports media has changed dramatically and rising costs and earnings pressures have caused business strategies to shift rapidly.
But to the typical sports fan, the thought of ESPN being owned by another group, even partially, is alarming.
For over 40 years, ESPN has unquestionably been the World Wide Leader in Sports. Others have tried to challenge the network but failed.
I can personally attest to this as I am a former ESPN employee who started right as Disney was about to acquire the company.
My career began during the height of the massive programming initiative “Sports Century.” I was there for the re-launch of ESPNews, the move of Monday Night Football from ABC Sports to ESPN, the integration of ABC Sports into ESPN, the acquisition of the NBA in 2002, Bristol’s expansion and many other company milestones.
ESPN grew quickly and no competitor could duplicate its success.
Remember when Fox Sports launched “Fox Sports Live” on FS1 to go head-to-head with SportsCenter? It ran for four years but failed miserably to attract any real audience share.
During my 5+ years at ESPN, we became the home of Championship programming, a title the network has shared at times but never fully relinquished.
But ESPN has not been exempt from the effects of cord-cutting and the rise of streaming/direct-to-consumer services.
Gone are ESPN Classic, ESPN Outdoors, the ESPN Zone, and ESPN The Magazine. More recently, thousands of employees were fired or didn’t have their contracts renewed in a corporate cost-cutting effort. This included long-time staff members and well-known on-air talent.
Iger’s comments sent shockwaves through the industry when they shouldn’t have. The writing has been on the wall and nothing, including high-profile talent, was safe.
Instead of feeling anger or fear, his comments should be seen as a major opportunity.
And one group who should take advantage of this and purchase an equity stake in ESPN, should it become available, are Black athletes.
With Michael Jordan revealing that he’s selling his majority ownership stake in the Charlotte Hornets, there are no other Black majority team owners in professional sports.
Magic Johnson, who already owns a minority stake in the Dodgers, will become a minority team owner of the Washington Commanders once the deal is ratified by the owners. He joins fellow NFL minority team owners Mellody Hobson, Lewis Hamilton and Condoleezza Rice, who are part of the ownership group of the Denver Broncos.
There was hope that a Black majority team owner would happen in the NFL when the Broncos were up for sale, but billionaire Robert F. Smith passed on the opportunity and entertainment mogul Byron Allen didn’t meet the financial requirements mandated by the NFL to purchase a team.
In soccer, there are a few Black minority team owners such as Kevin Durant (Philadelphia Union, Gotham FC), James Harden (Houston Dynamo) and The Antetokounmpo brothers and the Tennessee Titans’ Derrick Henry who both invested in Nashville SC.
The NHL has a Black minority team owner in Marshawn Lynch through his investment in the Seattle Kraken. Many thought Black ownership of an NHL team might happen this year, but the bid for the Ootowa Senators by Snoop Dogg and tech entrepreneur Neko Sparks was rejected.
And of course, there’s LeBron James who seems to have his hands in everything including the Boston Red Sox and Liverpool FC. Last year James said that he wants to own an NBA team when his playing days are over, and he wants it to be in Las Vegas.
With active professional athletes forbidden from owning teams in their respective sports, purchasing a piece of ESPN should be extremely appealing.
Imagine Kevin Durant’s KD Ventures teaming up with LeBron’s SpringHill Company and other Black athletes to form a Black athlete investment fund that enabled them to own a piece of ESPN.
Iger is seeking distribution, content and a large infusion of capital. A Black athlete investment fund led by Durant and James would provide that. And through ESPN, Durant could easily cross-promote his Boardroom property, James could distribute his sports programming, and others, both male and female, could do the same.
Most importantly, Black athletes, who are looking for ownership stakes in sports, would have that in the only company that broadcasts the NFL, NBA, NHL, MLB and others.
Black athletes will have a stake, and a voice, in the future of media distribution and creation. They will be at the table when/if the College Football Playoff expands to 12 teams and be part of the bidding process for the NCAA Women’s Basketball Tournament. They will be there for the exclusive SEC broadcast deal that begins in 2024 with the addition of Texas and Oklahoma and could be integral parts of the conversation around a revised ACC media rights deal should it occur.
Black athletes could also leverage the hundreds of millions of collective followers across their social media platforms to distribute ESPN content while also developing new revenue streams by monetizing that content.
That’s a powerful position, arguably more powerful than being a majority owner of a single team.
Black athletes would have access to almost every sports property in existence, and it could extend globally as well.
They would also learn about, and help shape, the evolving sports media industry.
The opportunity to own a piece of ESPN and help craft the future of sports media is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. For Black athletes to capture that ownership opportunity, it could become the most impactful sports acquisition in history, especially as it would mean that Black athletes are being shown on the very network that they (partially) own, distribute and create for.
So Black athletes, start gathering your colleagues now for if/when Bob Iger puts ESPN equity on the market, you’re already out of the blocks and ready to score.
