More Videos
- Moon Hopes To Complete Amazing Story
- These Poker Stories Are No Bluff
- Did Matsui Make Contract Money Last Night?
- Adidas Out At UCF After MJ's Son Wears Jordans
- If Yanks Win, Merchandise Will Fly Off Shelves
- Final World Series Games Big Money Makers
- What I Got Wrong About Keflezighi
- Marathon's Headline Win Is Empty
- New Cubs Owner Tom Ricketts Goes One-on-One With "SportsBiz"
- Roger Federer Signs With Chocolate Brand Deal
RSS FEED
MOST SHARED
- Obama Sees Strains Unless US, China Balance Growth
- Can Apple Top Microsoft as Most Valuable Tech Firm?
- Priceline Crushes Profit Forecasts; Shares Jump
- European Commission Objects to Sun Micro-Oracle Deal
- Mad Mail: Buy the Berkshire Hathaway Split?
- Future of Marketing
- Framed for Porn – By a PC Virus
- GM CEO Starts Opel Charm Tour in Germany
- Cramer: 5 Stocks to Play the Next Bull Run
- Why Google is Paying $750 Million for Ad Mob
- Warren Buffett to Sell Stakes In Union Pacific & Norfolk Southern
- Nov. 9: Unusual Volume Leaders
- The Battered Businesses Behind Housing
- Modern Warfare 2's Record-Breaking Launch
- Merck’s Mega-Monday Morning
- Why are Traders Bullish on This Food Company?
- Profiting From Natural Gas: Strategists
- S&P Stocks Trading at New 52-Week Highs
- Peak Oil Closer Than IEA Forecasts Show: Report
- UK Most at Risk of Losing Top Credit Rating: Fitch
- GM CEO Starts Charm Tour at Opel in Germany
- Vodafone Extends Cost-Cutting Scheme, Hits Targets
- Bad Debt Weighs on Barclays Earnings
- HSBC Operating Profit Beats, US Bad Debts Slip
- Fed's Tarullo Backs Surcharges to Limit Bank Size
- Look Ahead: 'Risk On' Sentiment Could Fuel Rally Further
- 'Modern Warfare 2': Biggest Entertainment Event of 2009?
Sports Biz
Text Size 
 |
With Jeff deGraff, the top tech analyst on the Street, predicting last night on CNBC's "Fast Money" that we are "probably in the fifth inning" of the meltdown, sports teams and their owners can't possibly be immune, with billions and billions of dollars lost.
Let's start with the "when."
The best guess, according to those in the know, is that if the bear market continues, a team will likely file for bankruptcy by February or March. Who is it going to be? It's hard to say unless you analyze every owner's unique financial situation. But it's generally believed that if a team files in the near future, odds are it will be an NHL team, they reason. That's because it's the sport with the least cash flow and probably has the owners with the lowest net worth. In fact, since 1974, a major professional sports team has filed for bankruptcy five times and every single one of them was a National Hockey League Team.
The Pittsburgh Penguins filed for bankruptcy in 1974 and 1998, the Los Angeles Kings filed in 1995 and the Ottawa Senators and the Buffalo Sabres filed for bankruptcy within days of each other in 2003. In June of this year, Nashville Predators co-owner William "Boots" Del Biaggio filed for Chapter 11.
Although owners love their sports teams, it's undeniable that many of their businesses are also losing money and that means, at some point, a team has to go. And once one owner does it, it's very possible that the financially strained in the toughest markets could go running to the courthouse to try to salvage something.
Bain Capital was laughed at when it was reported that they offered $4 billion to buy the entire NHL in 2005, as the sport endured a full season of sitting out from the lockout. That deal would have put the average franchise at $133 million. Almost four years later, that number looks pretty good.
Questions? Comments?
Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes