SOUTHPORT, Conn.—Diamond Sports Group said it has emerged from Chapter 11 bankuptcy as Main Street Sports Group with a significantly deleveraged balance sheet.

The news follows a lengthy bankruptcy restructuring process that will see the new Main Street Sports Group, doing business as FanDuel Sports Network and operating regional channels with local TV rights to 13 NBA teams, eight NHL teams and eight MLB teams. During the bankruptcy proceedings, the company concluded a naming rights agreement with FanDuel to use the FanDuel Sports Network name for its 16 RSNs.

In the NBA those teams include the Atlanta Hawks, Charlotte Hornets, Cleveland Cavaliers, Detroit Pistons, Indiana Pacers, Los Angeles Clippers, Memphis Grizzlies, Miami Heat, Milwaukee Bucks, Minnesota Timberwolves, Oklahoma City Thunder, Orlando Magic and San Antonio Spurs.

In the NHL, those teams include the Carolina Hurricanes, Columbus Blue Jackets, Detroit Red Wings, Los Angeles Kings, Minnesota Wild, Nashville Predators, St. Louis Blues and Tampa Bay Lightning.

In the MLB those teams include the Atlanta Braves, Los Angeles Angels, Miami Marlins, St. Louis Cardinals, Detroit Tigers, Tampa Bay Rays, Kansas City Royals and Milwaukee Brewers.

As previously reported, the reorganization plan was confirmed by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas on Nov. 14, 2024. The plan received nearly unanimous support from its funded debt holders. Funds managed by PGIM Fixed Income, Hein Park Capital Management LP, Discovery Capital Management, Hudson Bay Capital Management LP, Alta Fundamental Advisers LLC and others, have received equity for their funded debt claims. The restructuring reduced about $9 billion of Main Street Sports’ pre-petition debt to $200 million.

Since commencing Chapter 11 proceedings in March 2023, the company reported that it has “resolved complex legal matters, completed its operational separation from [former parent company] Sinclair, and secured key go-forward agreements with its top team, league and distribution partners. Importantly, terms were also reached on prominent partnerships with Amazon’s Prime Video and FanDuel that bolster the Company’s platform and direct-to-consumer (DTC) offerings.”

“Emerging from this process is the culmination of over 20 months of incredibly hard work to transform our business and position us to better serve passionate local fans across our markets,” Main Street Sports CEO David Preschlack said. “I am deeply grateful to everyone who made this restructuring possible—our new owners, partners, advisers and especially our dedicated employees. With a stronger balance sheet, key partnerships, supportive new owners, we are modernizing our business to thrive in a changing media landscape.”

SOUTHPORT, Conn.—A U.S. bankruptcy court has approved Diamond Sports Group’s reorganization plan, paving the way for the troubled regional sports network owner to emerge from Chapter 11 protection. Diamond expects to complete the restructuring process in the coming weeks.

The ruling in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas ends a long-running saga that highlighted the massive impact of cord-cutting on RSNs. After Sinclair paid $10.6 billion for the 21 former Fox Sports Net RSNs in 2019 and set up Diamond as a subsidiary, cord-cutting and a declining pay TV business pushed the group into Chapter 11 in March 2022.

Under the terms of the plan, Diamond will complete a comprehensive balance sheet restructuring that will reduce its debt from almost $9 billion to $200 million. On completion, Diamond will be capitalized with more than $100 million in cash and cash equivalents on its balance sheet.

Upon emergence, Diamond’s lead creditors—funds managed by or affiliated with PGIM, Inc., Hein Park Capital Management LP, Discovery Capital Management, Hudson Bay Capital Management LP and Alta Fundamental Advisors LLC—will exchange certain funded debt claims for equity in the reorganized company.

Sinclair’s equity interests in Diamond will be canceled.

Diamond will operate as a standalone entity, having completed its operational separation from Sinclair.

The new owners hope a streaming deal with Amazon's Prime Video, a naming rights agreement with FanDuel that saw the RSNs rebranded as FanDuel Network and rights to 27 MLB, NHL and NBA teams will be enough for the operations to prosper.

When it comes out of Chapter 11, Diamond will be home to 13 NBA teams, 8 NHL teams and 6 MLB teams, including:

• NBA: Atlanta Hawks, Charlotte Hornets, Cleveland Cavaliers, Detroit Pistons, Indiana Pacers, Los Angeles Clippers, Memphis Grizzlies, Miami Heat, Milwaukee Bucks, Minnesota Timberwolves, Oklahoma City Thunder, Orlando Magic and San Antonio Spurs.
• NHL: Carolina Hurricanes, Columbus Blue Jackets, Detroit Red Wings, Los Angeles Kings, Minnesota Wild, Nashville Predators, St. Louis Blues and Tampa Bay Lightning.
• MLB: Atlanta Braves, Los Angeles Angels, Miami Marlins, St. Louis Cardinals, Detroit Tigers and Tampa Bay Rays.

Following Diamond’s completion of the restructuring process, David Preschlack, CEO; Eric Ratchman, president of distribution and business development; and David DeVoe Jr., chief operating officer and chief financial officer will remain in their respective roles. Diamond’s Board will include new members after emergence from bankruptcy.

“Today is a landmark day for Diamond, as we embark on a new path for our business. Diamond is now unencumbered by legacy debt, financially stable and enthusiastically supported by new ownership,” Preschlack said. “Over the last 18 months, we have worked tirelessly to strengthen our business, including by reaching revised multiyear rights agreements with team and league partners, go-forward carriage agreements with major distribution partners, a broad naming rights partnership with FanDuel and a commercial agreement with Amazon. These critical achievements and a realigned business are enabling us to emerge as a sustainable, go-forward entity that drives value for our partners and fans.”

Preschlack continued: “Looking ahead, Diamond is well-positioned to further enhance its product offering and remains committed to delivering the highest quality live sports content in-market to fans through both linear and direct-to-consumer frameworks. I want to express my gratitude to the hardworking Diamond Sports Group employees for their unwavering support, dedication and continued confidence throughout this transformative period. Together, we are excited to build a bright future for Diamond and our stakeholders.”

Additional information regarding Diamond’s Chapter 11 proceeding, including court filings and information about the claims process are available here.

SOUTHPORT, Conn. and NEW YORK—Diamond Sports Group and the online gaming company FanDuel have announced a wide-ranging long-term commercial partnership that will see Diamond Bally Sports rebranded as the FanDuel Sports Network.

Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Diamond Sports has been undergoing restructuring under a Chapter 11 bankruptcy filing.

Under the deal, the 21 Bally Sports-branded RSNs were officially renamed under the FanDuel Sports Network brand with corresponding regional monikers. Diamond Sports Group's 16 owned and operated RSNs have become: FanDuel Sports Network Detroit, FanDuel Sports Network Florida, FanDuel Sports Network Great Lakes, FanDuel Sports Network Kansas City, FanDuel Sports Network Indiana, FanDuel Sports Network Midwest, FanDuel Sports Network North, FanDuel Sports Network Ohio, FanDuel Sports Network Oklahoma, FanDuel Sports Network SoCal, FanDuel Sports Network South, FanDuel Sports Network Southeast, FanDuel Sports Network Southwest, FanDuel Sports Network Sun, FanDuel Sports Network West, and FanDuel Sports Network Wisconsin.

“Partnering with Diamond provides us an opportunity to put the FanDuel brand at the intersection of the nation's largest group of regional sports networks,” FanDuel President of Sports Mike Raffensperger said. “A large cohort of FanDuel customers are devoted RSN viewers and this agreement allows us to further cement the FanDuel brand with sports fans and provides a unique vehicle to reward our users.”

Diamond and FanDuel announced that the commercial agreement includes:

• Exclusive rights to name Diamond's 16 regional sports networks and Diamond's digital offerings, including the Bally Sports+ direct-to-consumer product, as FanDuel Sports Network;
• Linear and digital media placement and integration opportunities across all live NBA, NHL and MLB games on FanDuel Sports Network;
• A shared commitment to explore a unified DTC app experience with the ability to syndicate FanDuel TV programming across FanDuel Sports Network, including studio programming like “Up & Adams,” “Run It Back” and FanDuel TV's live programming;
• FanDuel will have reseller designation for Diamond's DTC product and additional economic and equity elements.

Additional partnership elements and collaborations will be introduced in the coming months, the two companies said.

Additional information regarding Diamond's Chapter 11 cases, including court filings and information about the claims process are available here.

SOUTHPORT, Conn.—Diamond Sports Group LLC and Comcast have reached a new carriage agreement for the distribution of Diamond’s 15 regional sports networks ("RSNs") to Xfinity TV customers.

The deal will end a blackout that lasted nearly three months and is an important step forward in Diamond’s efforts to demonstrate to creditors and the bankruptcy court overseeing its restructuring that it can emerge from Chapter 11 as a viable concern. Diamond filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in March of 2023. 

The carriage agreement with Comcast follows Diamond’s previously announced distribution agreements with Charter Communications, DirectTV, Cox Communications and Fubo.

Under the agreement, subscribers to Comcast’s Xfinity Ultimate TV package in Bally Sports markets will gain access to live, local MLB, NBA and NHL games and pre- and post-game content on Diamond’s RSN channels, effective August 1, 2024. Additionally, Xfinity Ultimate TV customers will be able to stream Diamond’s RSN content by authenticating using their Xfinity credentials on the Bally Sports app.

"Entering a new carriage agreement with Comcast, our third largest distributor, is a critical step forward in our restructuring effort, and we are pleased that fans will again be able to access broadcasts of their local teams through Xfinity,” explained David Preschlack, CEO of Diamond Sports. “With certainty on our distribution, we are focused on finalizing an agreement with the NHL and resolving our ongoing negotiations with the NBA. We are mindful that time is of the essence with basketball and hockey seasons fast approaching, and once agreements with our team and league partners are complete, we intend to move expeditiously to present a plan of reorganization to the Court."

"We appreciate Diamond Sports working with us to reach a solution that returns the Bally Sports RSNs to our Ultimate TV customers in a way that reflects the changing video marketplace for local sports," said Greg Rigdon, president of Content Acquisition for Comcast. "We look forward to making these networks available on August 1, so customers can enjoy watching their favorite teams again."

Financial terms of the carriage agreement with Comcast were not disclosed.

Additional information regarding Diamond’s Chapter 11 cases, including court filings and information about the claims process are available at https://cases.ra.kroll.com/DSG.

SOUTHPORT, Conn.—Diamond Sports Group has reached a multi-year renewal of its distribution agreement with FuboTV Inc. for the continued carriage of Diamond’s portfolio of regional sports networks (“RSNs”).

Under the renewed agreement, Diamond’s RSNs will continue to be available to fans through Fubo’s Pro package. 

“We are thrilled to renew our agreement with Fubo, a major player in the vMVPD space and a leader in live sports streaming, to continue providing high quality local broadcasts to fans,” said David Preschlack, CEO of Diamond. “With the vast majority of our distribution partners in multi-year carriage agreements, Diamond remains focused on completing our reorganization and emerging as a sustainable, profitable business.”

Depending on the market, Fubo subscribers have streaming access to Bally Sports Detroit, Bally Sports Florida, Bally Sports Great Lakes, Bally Sports Indiana, Bally Sports Kansas City, Bally Sports Midwest, Bally Sports New Orleans, Bally Sports North, Bally Sports Ohio, Bally Sports Oklahoma, Bally Sports San Diego, Bally Sports SoCal, Bally Sports South, Bally Sports Southeast, Bally Sports Southwest, Bally Sports Sun, Bally Sports West and Bally Sports Wisconsin.

The agreement with Fubo follows Diamond’s previously announced agreements with Charter Communications, DirecTV, and Cox Communications.

Diamond has not, however, managed to conclude an agreement with Comcast. 

Financial terms were not disclosed.

SOUTHPORT, Conn. and EL SEGUNDO, Calif.—Diamond Sports Group (“Diamond” or the “Company”) and DirecTV have announced that they have reached a multi-year renewal of their distribution agreement for the continued carriage of Diamond’s portfolio of regional sports networks (RSNs). 

Diamond’s agreement with DirecTV follows Diamond’s previously announced multi-year renewal of its distribution agreement with Charter Communications, Inc and Cox Communications and the failure of its talks with Comcast, which dropped the RSN’s on April 30. 

Financial terms were not disclosed.

Under the agreement, DirecTV and DirecTV STREAM customers who select a CHOICETM, ULTIMATE or PREMIER package will maintain access to live, local MLB, NBA and NHL games and team related content featured on Diamond’s several RSN channels. Additionally, these customers will soon be able to stream Diamond’s RSN content by authenticating with their DirecTV subscription credentials on the Bally Sports app. 

Any DirecTV or DirecTV STREAM customers who do not have direct access to Diamond’s RSN channels as part of their primary video service will be able to purchase Diamond’s Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) product via DirecTV and access the full complement of local DTC content for any teams to which Diamond retains DTC rights, the companies said. 

“We are pleased to extend our relationship with DirecTV to provide high quality local sports telecasts for passionate fans in the home markets of our team partners,” said David Preschlack, CEO of Diamond. “This is a significant development for Diamond, and we highly value the relationship we have built with DirecTV and their customers over the course of many years. We remain focused on executing the steps necessary to reorganize Diamond with a structure that drives sustainable value for our stakeholders, including our distributors and league and team partners.”

“DirecTV has always been a sports leader and we continue to see significant opportunity for both our residential and commercial customers in local sports,” Rob Thun, chief content officer of DirecTV, stated:  We want to ensure our customers receive more flexibility, choice and value, and this agreement provides them with those capabilities. Diamond’s regional sports networks remain a key component of our live sports offering, and we look forward to working with Diamond and the many popular MLB, NBA, NHL, and other teams it retains for years to come under this new agreement.”

Bally Sports Regional Networks were taken off Comcast’s systems on April 30 when their existing distribution agreement expired and Diamond Sports Group was unable to reach a new agreement with Comcast. 

“We have been very flexible with Diamond Sports Group for months as they work through their bankruptcy proceedings, providing them with an extension on the Bally Sports Regional Networks last fall and a unilateral right to extend the term for another year, which they opted to not exercise," Comcast said in a released statement Tuesday. "We’d like to continue carrying their networks, but they have declined multiple offers and now we no longer have the rights to this programming. We will proactively credit our customers for the costs associated with them – most will automatically receive $8 to 10 per month in credits.”

The blackout impacts such teams as the Minnesota Twins, the Detroit Tigers, the Atlanta Braves, and others. Overall, Comcast carried 15 of Diamond's RSNs before the blackout according to Sportico. 

Diamond Sports Group complained in a statement that “It’s disappointing that Comcast rejected a proposed extension that would have kept our channels on the air and that Comcast indicated that it intends to pull the signals, preventing fans from watching their favorite local teams. Comcast has refused to engage in substantive discussions despite Diamond offering terms similar to those reached with much larger distributors of ours.”

Diamond also noted that the networks continue to be available on Fubo, DirecTV,  DirecTV Stream, or through its direct-to-consumer offering, Bally Sports Plus, for the teams for which Diamond retains DTC rights.

The failure to reach an agreement is a blow to Diamond's efforts to emerge from Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization where it needs to show creditors that it has distribution for its ongoing businesses. 

SOUTHPORT, Conn. & ATLANTA—Diamond Sports Group and Cox Communications have reached a multi-year renewal of their distribution agreement for the continued carriage of Diamond’s portfolio of regional sports networks (RSNs).

"This multi-year agreement with Cox is a significant milestone for Diamond’s go-forward business as we continue to execute the steps necessary to complete our reorganization,” said David Preschlack, CEO of Diamond. “We are pleased to continue partnering with Cox to provide high quality local sports broadcasts to passionate fans.”

Under the agreement, Cox Contour TV Preferred and Contour TV Ultimate customers will continue to have access to live, local MLB, NBA and NHL games and team related content on Diamond’s RSN channels. 

Additionally, Cox Contour TV Preferred and Contour TV Ultimate customers will be able to stream Diamond’s RSN content by authenticating with their Cox subscription credentials on the Bally Sports app. 

Customers who do not have access to Diamond’s RSN channels as part of their service will be able to purchase Diamond’s Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) product to access all local DTC content for the teams for which Diamond retains DTC rights.

Suzanne Fenwick, senior vice president, content acquisition for Cox Communications added that “We are delighted that we could find a reasonable path to extend our partnership with Diamond Sports. We look forward to continuing to deliver regional sports content to our subscribers.”

Diamond’s agreement with Cox follows Diamond’s previously announced multi-year renewal of its distribution agreement with Charter Communications, Inc.

SOUTHPORT, Conn.—As it moves towards finishing bankruptcy reorganization of its debts and operations in Chapter 11, Diamond Sports Group has announced that it has reached a multi-year renewal of its distribution agreement with Charter Communications to carry Diamond’s portfolio of regional sports networks (“RSNs”).

Under the new agreement, customers will continue to have access to live, local MLB, NBA and NHL games and pre- and post-game content on Diamond’s RSN channels through Charter’s Spectrum TV Select Plus package. 

Additionally, Spectrum TV Select Plus customers will be able to stream Diamond’s RSN content by authenticating with their subscription credentials on the Bally Sports app. Customers who do not have access to Diamond’s RSN channels as part of their service will be able to purchase Diamond’s Direct-to-Consumer (DTC) product, including from Spectrum, to access all local DTC content for the teams for which Diamond retains DTC rights.

“Extending our distribution relationship with Charter is a key milestone and an important part of our go-forward plan, as we remain focused on restructuring the company and moving forward as a sustainable, profitable business,” David Preschlack, CEO of Diamond, stated. “We expect this agreement to generate value for Diamond, Charter and our team and league partners, and enable us to continue providing high quality broadcasts for passionate local fans. We believe this agreement can serve as a model in the ongoing time-sensitive negotiations with our other distribution partners to reach carriage agreements that work for all parties.”

Sinclair said this week it has inked a financing deal with its bankrupt Diamond Sports Group that would allow the RSN to continue operations. 

The “Restructuring Support Agreement” will see Sinclair pay $495 million to Diamond—which declared bankruptcy in 2023 with more than $9 billion in debt spread across its 19 Bally Sports regional sports networks. The payment will settle a $1.5 billion lawsuit filed by Diamond against Sinclair last summer in which the company was seeking to retrieve up to $1.5 billion in management fees it paid to Sinclair following Sinclair’s acquisition of Fox’s 19 RSNs (under the “Bally Sports Group” brand) from Disney.

Sinclair said that $496 million payment could result in a net cost to Sinclair of $250 million to $325 million. 

The new agreement includes a $115 million minority investment from Amazon whose Prime Video streaming service will become the new home to Diamond’s “Bally Sports Plus” D2C apps. The cash infusion will allow Diamond to pay $350 million to its creditors, emerge from bankruptcy and continue to operate the RSNs independently.

David Preschlack, CEO of Diamond stated: "We are thrilled to have reached a comprehensive restructuring agreement that provides a detailed framework for a reorganization plan and substantial new financing that will enable Diamond to operate and thrive beyond 2024. 

"We are grateful for the support from Amazon and a group of our largest creditors who clearly believe in the value-creating potential of this business," Preschlack continued. "Diamond's near-term focus will be on implementing the RSA and emerging from bankruptcy as a going concern for the benefit of our investors, our employees, our team, league and distribution partners, and the millions of fans who will continue to enjoy our broadcasts."

The agreement—which is subject to court approval—is a sign of the new reality in which regional sports networks, which have suffered declining ratings due to the increase in subscribers cutting the pay TV cord over the years now will operate in a hybrid fashion with Amazon, according to one observer.

“Diamond was paying over $2 billion indeed to the leagues. The RSNs can’t generate enough revenue for the teams only being on cable,” one source familiar with the talks told TV Tech sister brand NextTV. “They definitely can’t go exclusively DTC. Diamond will be able to make money on cable, make money on DTC with streaming and put a number of games on broadcast, some on Sinclair stations.”. 

Diamond Sports Group and the NHL have reached an agreement to keep games for 11 NHL teams on Bally Sports regional sports networks through the end of this season. 

The agreement was filed in bankruptcy court and is subject to court approval. 

The Associated Press is reporting that the local rights for those 11 franchises will revert back to the NHL at the end of this season.

Diamond also reached a deal for the NBA for games to remain on Bally Sports for this season in November, the AP said. 

LOS ANGELES—Diamond Sports Group and the Los Angeles Kings (“LA Kings”) have  announced a new, multi-year market and digital rights agreement that ensures Diamond remains the LA Kings’ exclusive local media partner.

Since filing for bankruptcy protection, Diamond has lost or shed some regional sports rights and has been trying to retain its more profitable operations. 

Under the agreement, Diamond’s Bally Sports West will broadcast approximately 65 live games, as well as pre and postgame shows and original programming. Fans will have streaming access via the Bally Sports app, when they authenticate with their pay TV credentials or subscribe to Bally Sports+, the direct-to-consumer (DTC) offering. Financial details of the agreement were not disclosed.

“We are thrilled to extend our longstanding relationship with the LA Kings as we work together to continue delivering high-quality, live game broadcasts to our enthusiastic and dedicated regional sports audiences,” explained David Preschlack, CEO of Diamond. “This partnership furthers our commitment to the Bally Sports West distribution markets and to providing LA Kings fans with in-depth coverage of their favorite team on multiple platforms. Additionally, we are encouraged by the progress we are making in our restructuring process and are hopeful that this agreement can serve as a model for future discussions with our team and league partners.”

“The LA Kings and AEG are proud to extend our long-standing partnership with Bally Sports,” said Dan Beckerman, president and CEO, AEG and Alternate Governor, LA Kings. “For nearly 40 years, our organizations have enjoyed this strong relationship, and we look forward to the future together.”

Bally Sports West is a joint venture part owned by entities affiliated with the Los Angeles Angels and has been the home of the Kings since 1985, delivering exclusive coverage and telecasts of Angels and Kings games to fans in the greater Los Angeles area.

Sinclair subsidiary Diamond Sports Group has decided to no longer pay  Major League Baseball's San Diego Padres and has dropped the team from the Bally Sports regional sports networks portfolio. 

“Diamond Sports Group (DSG) has decided not to provide additional funding to the San Diego RSN that would enable it to make the rights payment to the San Diego Padres during the grace period and will no longer be broadcasting Padres games after Tuesday, May 30," Diamond said in a statement provided to TV Tech sister brand Next TV Tuesday afternoon.

"While DSG has significant liquidity and has been making rights payments to teams, the economics of the Padres’ contract were not aligned with market realities," Diamond added. "MLB has forced our hand by its continued refusal to negotiate direct-to-consumer (DTC) streaming rights for all teams in our portfolio despite our proposal to pay every team in full in exchange for those rights. We are continuing to broadcast games for teams under our contracts.”

MLB says it will support teams that are no longer receiving compensation from Diamond and will offer Padres games via its MLB.TV app for free until June 4. Starting next Monday, June 5, Padres fans will be charged $20 per month of $75 for the remainder of the regular season and will also mean that local blackout rules will not apply. 

Fans will also be able to catch the games on a new channel via cable, satellite and streaming.

NextTV has the story.  

The Phoenix Suns NBA team has been blocked from entering into a new TV and streaming agreement with Gray Television because of a possible violation of its contract with its current broadcast outlet Diamond Sports Group, which filed for bankruptcy in March. 

U.S. Bankruptcy Christopher Lopez Wednesday ruled that the Suns’ new contract that would allow the Suns and Mercury WNBA games to be broadcast over Gray TV local stations as well as a direct to consumer streaming service powered by Kiswe was void because it had not allowed Diamond Sports Group to negotiate an extension to the contract, according to Reuters.

Gray Television last month announced a deal with Suns NBA and Mercury WNBA teams to bring every locally broadcast game to viewers for free in a statewide distribution model utilizing Gray’s Phoenix television stations KTVK (Arizona’s Family 3TV) and the newly launched KPHE (Arizona’s Family Sports & Entertainment Network). 

Up until the regular 2022-2023 season, Suns games were aired on Bally Sports Arizona, a division of Sinclair-owned Diamond Sports Group RSN, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in March, citing $8 billion in debt. Immediately after the announcement, Diamond said that the deal violated its current agreement with the Suns.

While Diamond was not awarded any compensatory damages in yesterday's hearing, Lopez left the door open for compensation in a future hearing. 

Attorneys for the Suns told Lopez that their contract with Diamond had expired after the 2022-2023 season, but Lopez countered that the team had promoted the new contract with Gray as a confirmed deal. 

"The Suns are saying one thing outside the court and another thing inside it," he said. 

After the hearing Phoenix Suns CEO Josh Bartelstein said that it would work toward "a fair resolution that will be in the best interest of our fans, our community, and our players," according to Reuters.

According to NextTV, sources familiar with the teams’ negotiations, the Suns received approximately $25 million a season from Diamond but that the new deal with Gray TV which would involve over-the-air broadcasts and a direct-to-consumer streaming service with Kiswe Mobile, involved “significantly less money.” 

PHOENIX—As regional sports networks struggle to stay afloat amid an increase in cord cutting and rising sports rights fees, one broadcast station group has decided to follow the cord cutters and bring live professional sports back to free over-the-air TV. 

In an agreement characterized as “transformative,” Gray Television today announced a deal with the Phoenix Suns NBA and Phoenix Mercury WNBA teams to bring every locally broadcast game to viewers for free in a statewide distribution model utilizing Gray’s Phoenix television stations KTVK (Arizona’s Family 3TV) and the newly launched KPHE (Arizona’s Family Sports & Entertainment Network). 

Up until the regular 2022-2023 season, Suns games were aired on Bally Sports Arizona, a division of Sinclair-owned Diamond Sports Group RSN, which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy last month.

The agreement is subject to the approval of the NBA and WNBA and any required resolution with Diamond, which issued a statement immediately following the announcement, claiming that the deal violates its existing agreements with the Suns.  

“The Phoenix Suns breached our contract and violated bankruptcy law, and Diamond Sports Group will pursue all remedies against any parties that attempt to exercise control over our property interests while we reorganize,” Diamond Sports said in a statement. “This is an improper effort by the Suns to change their broadcasting partner without permitting Diamond to exercise our contractual rights.”

Gray has not issued a response. 

If it survives legal scrutiny, upon the expansion of KPHE into the Tucson and Yuma markets in the next several weeks, the new media rights deal will make the Suns and Mercury games available to nearly 2.8 million households across all three of Arizona’s three media markets, tripling the teams’ reach to fans who have been unable to access the games through its previous distribution arrangement with a non-broadcast regional sports network.

The deal will also allow Suns and Mercury fans to watch games over their smartphones and Smart TVs alongside the over-the-air broadcast product via a Suns or Mercury-branded app developed by Kiswe, a startup that specializes in developing live sports streaming tech. The 2023 Phoenix Mercury season will stream DTC for free.

“Live sports can bring a community together. Combining that with the power of broadcast television and Arizona’s Family, it becomes a multiplier effect benefitting the team, the fans, and the clients,” said Debbie Bush, Vice President and General Manager, Arizona’s Family. “Our goal since day one has been creating a model that provides all fans the ability to connect with and cheer on their favorite teams via the distribution method of their choice. We are confident this model will increase fan loyalty and engagement.”

All Suns and Mercury non-national exclusive games will be broadcast between the two stations. KTVK will air a total of 13 Mercury regular season games and all available post-season games, with the remaining regular season games airing on KPHE. The Suns will have a minimum of 70 games broadcast each season, with at least 40 regular-season games on KTVK and the remaining on KPHE.

“We’re thrilled this partnership will connect our loyal family of viewers with the Phoenix Suns and Mercury,” said Pat LaPlatney, President & Co-CEO of Gray Television. “In a very short window, Mat Ishbia has begun to build a world-class organization both on and off the court. And with today’s announcement, Mat has made good on his promise to focus on the community and put their fans first. We are very pleased to play a part in that effort with our stations in Phoenix, Tucson, and ultimately Yuma.”

“We are excited to be partnering with the Phoenix Suns, Phoenix Mercury, and Gray Television on this groundbreaking new direct-to-fan distribution model,” said Glenn Booth, CEO of Kiswe. “Kiswe's goal is to bring live sports to all fans through immersive digital experiences, and we can't wait to start streaming games to any Arizona basketball fans who want to watch these iconic teams.”

The first Phoenix Mercury game will air live on KTVK and simulcast on KPHE Thursday, May 25th at 7p.m. when the Mercury take on the Minnesota Lynx.

This article has been updated to include Diamond's response to the announcement. 

BALTIMORE—Sinclair Broadcast’s Diamond Sports Group filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy on Tuesday citing $9 billion in debt spread across its 19 Bally Sports regional sports networks. In its filing, it said the RSNs will continue to operate and that it has approximately $425 million in case to finance its operations and restructure. 

Sinclair said it plans to spin off Diamond to become a standalone company with ownership going to its creditors and secondary and unsecured creditors. 

The filing came as little surprise as warning signs of the RSN’s imminent bankruptcy had been known for months. Sinclair acquired the RSNs from Fox in 2019 for $10.6 billion and $8 billion in debt. But as more consumers cut the cord, cancelling their pay-TV subscriptions and pro sports leagues continue to increase their rights fees, the financial pressure has increased among all regional sports networks, with Warner Bros. Discovery—which operates three RSNs—informing sports leagues last month that it plans to exit the business, according to the Wall Street Journal. 

Diamond—which missed a $140 million interest payment last month—owns the rights to broadcast to 14 MLB teams as well as several NBA, NHL and WNBA teams. In a news conference in February, Major League Baseball Commissioner Rob Manfred commented on DSG’s tenuous position. 

"We've been really clear that if Diamond doesn't pay, under every single one of the broadcast agreements, that creates a termination right, and our clubs will proceed to terminate those contracts,” Manfred said. In the event that MLB stepped in, what we would do is we would produce the games, we would make use of our asset, the MLB Network, to do that. We would go directly to distributors — meaning Comcast, Charter, the big distributors — and make an agreement to have those games distributed on cable networks.

"We would also be seeking flexibility on the digital side, so that when you look at MLB.tv, you'd go in, you can buy your out-of-market package like you've always had, but you would have the option to buy up into in-market games, which I see as a huge improvement for fans."

According to CNBC, DSG has missed only one rights payment to a sports team, the Arizona Diamondback, to which it has yet to secure streaming rights.   

David Preschlack, CEO of Diamond, said DSG filing Chapter 11 will allow the company “to reset our capital structure and strengthen our balance sheet through the elimination of approximately $8 billion of debt. The financial flexibility attained through this restructuring will allow DSG to evolve our business while continuing to provide exceptional live sports productions for our fans.

“DSG will continue broadcasting games and connecting fans across the country with the sports and teams they love, Preschlack continued. “With the support of our creditors, we expect to execute a prompt and efficient reorganization and to emerge from the restructuring process as a stronger company.”

BALTIMORE—Financial woes in the regional sports network sector escalated this week as Sinclair’s Diamond Sports Group announced this week that it had decided to not to make $140 million interest payment on its debt, a move that will trigger a 30-day grace period during which it can negotiate with creditors. 

Diamond Sports Group, an independently-managed and unconsolidated subsidiary of Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc., owns the Bally Sports, which owns and operates 19  regional sports networks (RSNs).  

Sinclair’s financially troubled regional sports network operator said that skipping the payment would “maximize its financial flexibility” and that it would “use the 30-day grace period to continue progressing its ongoing discussions with creditors and other key stakeholders regarding potential strategic alternatives and deleveraging transactions to best position Diamond Sports Group for the future.”

Diamond Sports Group also said that it “expects that its business will continue as usual, and it will keep broadcasting quality live sports productions for fans while it addresses its balance sheet.”

RSNs around the country have been struggling as cord-cutting has accelerated and pay TV operators have looked for ways of cutting programming costs. 

This week Sportico reported that the Bally Sports networks weren’t the only ones facing financial woes. “According to multiple league, finance and network sources, the three AT&T SportsNet brands [owned by Warner Bros. Discovery] in recent weeks have handed over lighter-than-expected envelopes to their respective MLB franchise partners,” Sportico reported. 

In response to Diamond’s announcement that it will not pay the interest on its senior secured second-lien notes, senior secured third-lien notes, and senior unsecured notes due Feb. 15, 2023, S&P Global Ratings issued a statement saying it “views the missed interest payments as a default. Therefore, we lowered our issuer credit ratings on Diamond Sports Holdings LLC and subsidiary DSG to 'D' from 'CCC-'. At the same time, we lowered our issue-level ratings on DSG's senior secured second-lien notes to 'D' from 'CCC-' and senior unsecured notes to 'D' from 'C'. The company's senior secured third-lien notes are unrated."

S&P also said “We do not expect the company to make its interest payments within the 30-day grace period to preserve financial flexibility. DSG is discussing strategic alternatives with creditors and other key stakeholders, which we believe will likely result in a comprehensive debt restructuring or bankruptcy filing.”

Bloomberg News is reporting that the Diamond Sports Group is planning to miss a $140 million payment on its debts in mid-February and that the Sinclair-backed company is planning to file for bankruptcy, which would allow the regional sports network operator to restructure its massive $8.6 billion debts. 

“The outcome will have serious implications for the $55 billion world of sports-media rights: the company’s channels showcase Major League Baseball, National Basketball Association and National Hockey League games to fans from Detroit and Phoenix to San Diego,” the article noted. 

The article cites people with knowledge of the matter, who declined to be identified citing the private nature of the talks. 

Sinclair declined to comment in response a TV Tech request for a statement on the report. 

If the bankruptcy filing proceeds in a typical fashion, the bankruptcy restructuring would most likely turn the holders of Diamon’s debt into owners. Bloomberg reported that Diamond expects to emerge from any restructuring by May or June, one person said. At that point, its largest owners would include Prudential Financial, Fidelity, Hein Park Capital Management and Mudrick Capital Management, according to multiple people.

Another alternative would be for the teams to acquire ownership stakes or to take back the media rights.

The possible bankruptcy filing stems from ongoing woes in the regional sports business. Faced with massive video sub losses, pay TV providers have dropped or worked to limit their carriage of these expensive services, which in turn has cut into the carriage fees Diamond’s Bally Sports Networks had hoped to receive when the company was acquired by Sinclair. 

To compensate for that, Bally launched direct-to-consumer services last year but those businesses will take time to build. 

NEW YORK—FuboTV has inked a deal with Sinclair Broadcast Group that will bring Bally Sports’ 19 regional sports networks (RSNs) to Fubo in the coming weeks. 

The Bally Sports RSNs are owned and operated by Diamond Sports Group, a subsidiary of Sinclair. This agreement expands the existing partnership, which already includes the carriage of Sinclair’s owned local broadcast stations, Tennis Channel and Marquee Sports Network (television home of the Chicago Cubs), on Fubo TV.

The deal will allow cord cutters to access local sports on Sinclair’s RSNs without having to subscribe to traditional cable or satellite and will expand FuboTVs live sports footprint. 

How much of an impact the deal will have on Sinclair’s struggling Diamond Sports Group RSNs remains to be seen. Since Sinclair acquired the Bally Sports RSNs from Disney and rebranded it as Diamond, the broadcaster has incurred more than $9 billion in debt as sports rights costs explode and subscribers continue to cut the cord. Sinclair reports that Diamond lost more than $1 billion in its most recent quarter and according to a report in the New York Post over the weekend, the division could face bankruptcy if MLB, NBA and NHL—which have expressed interest in acquiring Diamond—back out.  

With this new agreement, FuboTV will provide subscribers with access to their respective local Bally Sports RSN(s), including: Bally Sports Arizona, Bally Sports Detroit, Bally Sports Florida, Bally Sports Great Lakes, Bally Sports Indiana, Bally Sports Kansas City, Bally Sports Midwest, Bally Sports New Orleans, Bally Sports North, Bally Sports Ohio, Bally Sports Oklahoma, Bally Sports San Diego, Bally Sports SoCal, Bally Sports South, Bally Sports Southeast, Bally Sports Southwest, Bally Sports Sun, Bally Sports West and Bally Sports Wisconsin.

FuboTV, which currently has 1.2 million subscribers, will offer fans a new streaming option for Bally Sports RSNs as well as a leading choice for RSN coverage with a total of over 35 networks in its portfolio, and most available in its base channel package (Pro). Fubo’s sports offering includes more than 50,000 live sporting events annually, with many streaming in 4K, from RSNs, local broadcast networks and national sports networks ESPN, FS1, CBS Sports Network, the Pac-12 Networks and many more. In addition to sports, FuboTV also streams popular live entertainment and news programming and features more than 40,000 TV shows and movies on-demand each month.

“RSNs are integral to FuboTV’s sports-first content strategy and our mission to superserve local passionate sports fans,” said Henry Ahn, chief business officer, FuboTV. “We are very pleased to bring Fubo subscribers significant local sports coverage through our new partnership with Bally Sports, the nation’s leader in local sports rights. Sinclair has been a great partner and we’re pleased that we were able to work together well to get a deal done that is meaningful and beneficial for both sides. We’re looking forward to bringing the Bally Sports RSNs to Fubo subscribers in the coming weeks.”

“FuboTV has long been associated with connecting sports fans to their favorite teams and we are thrilled to be expanding our partnership to include the Bally Sports regional sports networks across their platform, providing Fubo’s subscribers with streaming access to their favorite hometown Bally Sports teams,” said Will Bell, SVP, head of distribution and network relations, Sinclair. “Fubo has been a great partner, and we are excited to continue to grow our relationship to serve our collective viewers.”

BALTIMORE—The Sinclair Broadcast Group, Inc. has promoted Scott Shapiro executive vice president, corporate development and strategy. In the role, Shapiro will be responsible for managing and executing large strategic investments and acquisitions and formulating and facilitating organic opportunities.

He will continue to report into Chris Ripley, President & CEO of Sinclair. Previously, Shapiro served as Sinclair’s senior vice president, chief development officer, and CFO/COO of Diamond Sports Group.

“Scott is an integral part of the future of our business and the transformation of Sinclair into a diversified media company,” Ripley said. “We thank Scott for helping to acquire Bally Sports and stepping in to serve as Diamond Sports Group’s CFO/COO through its transition to an independent company. We are thrilled he will now return his entire focus to Sinclair, and we look forward to his leadership as we continue to drive growth and innovation across the company.”

Shapiro joined Sinclair in 2011 and after fulfilling various roles in finance, launched the Corporate Development team in 2015 where he was promoted to vice president in 2016, senior vice president in 2019, and named senior vice president, chief development officer in 2020. In addition to his corporate development role, he has spent the last several years on innovative initiatives such as the launch of multicast channels Comet, Charge!,, TBD and Stadium, as well as the creation and launch of Marquee Sports Network and the Bally Sports+ direct-to-consumer platform.

He previously worked in Institutional Equity Research at Morgan Stanley and Prudential Equity Group. Shapiro additionally has an audit and tax background, working for both KPMG LLP and PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP. He holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in History from the University of Rochester and a Master of Business Administration from the University of Virginia’s Darden School of Business.

BALTIMORE—As the Bally Sport+ direct-to-consumer app celebrated its official national rollout on Sept. 26, Sinclair’s Diamond Sports Group also announced that it had expanded the distribution of Bally Sports+ to include Roku. 

The deal means that Roku users will have the ability to download the Bally Sports app, subscribe to the Bally Sports+ service and stream live games and programming from their favorite local teams, all within the Roku platform. Roku users who subscribe to a pay TV service will continue to be able to authenticate through the Bally Sports app to access their regional sports content.

“Our regional sports audiences include some of the most loyal viewers, and we are excited to expand our reach as we officially launch Bally Sports+, offering fans even more ways to watch their hometown teams,” said Michael Schneider, COO and general manager, Bally Sports+. “Roku shares our same passion for delivering live, local sports to fans across the country on a nightly basis. They have been fantastic partners in servicing our pay TV viewers and we look forward to growing our partnership with the addition of our direct-to-consumer offering.”

In addition to the Roku platform, Bally Sports+ subscribers can access the service on Amazon Fire, Android TV, Apple TV, mobile and tablet devices: iOS/Android, and BallySports.com.

The Bally Sports regional sports networks (RSNs) serve as the TV home to more than half of all MLB, NHL and NBA teams based in the United States with 19 owned-and-operated RSNs.

BALTIMORE & BURBANK, Calif.—The Sinclair Broadcast Group and Disney have finalized a deal that will see Sinclair acquire 21 regional sports networks, as well as Fox College Sports, from Disney for a total price of $9.6 billion, which the Department of Justice has given its approval. Disney was required to divest the RSNs following its acquisition of 21st Century Fox.

To acquire the RSNs, Sinclair created an indirect subsidiary, Diamond Sports Group LLC, with Byron Allen agreeing to become and equity and content partner. According to Sinclair CEO and President Chris Ripley, Jeff Krolik, president of the RSNs, as well as of the RSN management team and staff, will now join Sinclair.

“We are very excited about the transformational aspects the RSN acquisition will have on Sinclair and are eager to bring those opportunities to life,” said Ripley.

With the deal, Sinclair now have the exclusive local rights to 42 professional teams, including 14 for MLB, 16 NBA and 12 NHL teams. The deal excludes the YES Network.

Here is the complete list of RSNs acquired by Sinclair: Fox Sports Arizona, Fox Sports Detroit, Fox Sports Florida, Fox Sports Sun, Fox Sports North, Fox Sports Wisconsin, Fox Sports Ohio, SportsTime Ohio, Fox Sports South, Fox Sports Carolina, Fox Sports Tennessee, Fox Sports Southeast, Fox Sports Southwest, Fox Sports Oklahoma, Fox Sports New Orleans, Fox Sports Midwest, Fox Sports Kansas City, Fox Sports Indiana, Fox Sports San Diego, Fox Sports West and Prime Ticket.