Bally Sports Regional Networks plans to retain TV rights to the Miami Marlins, in addition to the Atlanta Braves, when the media company emerges from Chapter 11 bankruptcy, a lawyer for MLB disclosed today at a virtual court hearing called to discuss the proposed FanDuel naming rights sponsorship to replace Bally Sports. The judge approved that deal despite concerns expressed by MLB.
Bally Sports once had 15 MLB teams under contract, but the figure fell after the regional sports network company’s parent Diamond Sports Group filed for Chapter 11 in March 2023. Diamond aired games from 11 teams in 2024. MLB has fought Diamond repeatedly through the Chapter 11, and has plans for its own local media offering.
So it came as a relief to MLB when Diamond said it would only keep the Braves heading into 2025, though that was only for the teams covered by the Chapter 11. Five teams–the Marlins, the Kansas City Royals, the St. Louis Cardinals, the Los Angeles Angels, and the Cincinnati Reds–are in joint ventures with Diamond and are not covered by the Chapter 11. So Diamond’s decisions whether to keep those arrangements are not subject to the approval of the court. An agreement to go forward with the Marlins had not been previously disclosed while the broadcast future of the four other JV teams are not set.
MLB’s lawyer, James Bromley, also disclosed the league will object to Diamond keeping the Braves contract when the Chapter 11 approval hearing is scheduled next month.
MLB also called last week’s motion by Diamond to approve the FanDuel deal an “ambush” because the league had not been given the term sheet to review how these games will be produced in tandem with FanDuel sports betting information.
“These are motions being filed in an ambush fashion, not providing us with the opportunity to see information that is critical, and the statements that are made with respect to the need for sealing this information are threadbare at best,” Bromley said. “What we’re talking about here are very broad statements that are being made in the motion about the debtors and FanDuel integrating the entirety of their operations to maximize the opportunities that are being provided by online gambling and sports betting.”
Judge Chris Lopez expressed surprise that MLB was still objecting to matters before the court.
“I thought MLB wanted out?” Lopez asked. Bromley replied, “We want out.” To which Lopez replied, “Then what’s the issue?” To which Bromley retorted, “The debtors plan of reorganization currently anticipates the assumption of the Atlanta Braves executory contract, which we will be opposing, as well as the continued, a continued relationship with the Miami Marlins with respect to a non bankrupt JV entity, therefore the reorganized entities are going to have access to and televise, if the plan is confirmed, Major League Baseball content. So that’s not out..”
Joe Graham, a lawyer for Diamond, replied on the concerns over gambling integration into MLB broadcasts that Diamond would adhere to all league rules. And Diamond had already sent the term sheet language to MLB.
“There’s nothing about this relief and entering into it today and getting approval of this term sheet that is going to impact baseball, because at the end of the day, we will have to work with them,” he said. “There are, as Mr. Bromley alluded to, there are two teams. Obviously we’re in negotiations with other teams, which he also alluded to, around remaining in the fold.”
“And in many ways, this is no different than being called Bally Sports, which is another gaming company. And as we’ve been working with Bally Sports over the last several years… we do not have pay to bet gaming through their website, or through our DTC product, because those are not rights we have. And so if there’s concerns about them, it’ll be no different than that.” DTC is direct to consumer and refers to Bally Sports’ streaming app.
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