While the future of Diamond Sports Group’s regional sports networks (RSNs) remains in flux as the company attempts to emerge from bankruptcy proceedings, they have apparently found the naming rights replacement for Bally Sports.
In Tuesday’s Chapter 11 hearing in the long-running DSG case, the company disclosed that it found a new naming rights partner. As part of DSG’s reorganization plan, they were able to end the current deal with Bally, which runs through the 2024 MLB season. That deal had originally been reached with Sinclair, DSG’s estranged parent company.
“We recently reached an agreement in principle with a third party on rebranding the RSNs and we are working diligently to turn that agreement in principle into a document agreement,” Diamond’s counsel told the court on Tuesday, via Sportico.
While they didn’t name the new naming rights partner for their 18 RSNs in court, Bloomberg reported Monday that DSG and FanDuel were “close to an agreement”
If true, expect to see your local Bally Sports RSN rebrand into a FanDuel one starting with the upcoming NBA and NHL seasons. Presumably, there will be some kind of integration with the gambling company’s sportsbook and daily fantasy sports efforts.
DSG said it would file an approval motion with the court related to the naming rights partner in the coming weeks.
[Sportico]
