{"id":2068045,"date":"2026-07-29T19:04:19","date_gmt":"2026-07-29T16:04:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2068045"},"modified":"2026-07-29T19:04:19","modified_gmt":"2026-07-29T16:04:19","slug":"philadelphias-lebron-economy-is-going-to-create-a-ton-of-value-for-only-3-8m","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/?p=2068045","title":{"rendered":"Philadelphia\u2019s \u2018LeBron economy\u2019 is going to create a ton of value for only $3.8m"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Welcome back to MoneyCall, The Athletic<\/em>\u2019s weekly sports business cheat sheet.<\/p>\n

First, a quick favor to ask of this community: If you have colleagues, friends or family who might enjoy this weekly analysis of the latest in money, power and attention in sports, can you take 10 seconds and forward this link to them with a rec to give it a try? Thanks!<\/p>\n

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Name-dropped today: LeBron James, Rich Paul, Cathy Engelbert, George Costanza, JP Morgan Chase, Angel Reese, Frank \u201cThe Tank\u201d Fleming, Jackson Koivun, Luke Kuechly, The Greenbrier<\/strong> and more. Let\u2019s go:<\/p>\n

Driving the Conversation<\/h2>\n

Philly\u2019s new LeBron-powered economy<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u201cThat\u2019s why you don\u2019t envision anything until it happens.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2014 Steph Curry to my colleague Marcus Thompson II, about LeBron\u2019s decision to pick the 76ers over the Warriors<\/a> and everyone else.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s a profound (and kind of sad!) assessment, but now that something has most definitely happened, let\u2019s map many of the big winners in Philly\u2019s new LeBron economy.<\/p>\n

(\u201cLeBronomy?\u201d No? Terrible portmanteau? Yup, that\u2019s totally fair. They can\u2019t all be winners, folks.)<\/p>\n

\ud83e\udd11 Sixers ticket sales, corporate suite sales, sponsorship sales, marketing department, the whole business side:<\/strong> I\u2019m old enough to remember Michael Jordan in D.C. Massive windfall. Rip up the revenue projections and double the goals.<\/p>\n

\ud83d\udcfa The NBA\u2019s TV partners:<\/strong> Imagine the Sixers on opening night. On Christmas Day, once the schedule is out. Sixers vs. Celtics, Lakers, Heat and Everybody. They can appear on national TV up to nearly three dozen times in the regular season, and they surely will<\/a>. Ratings bonanza. (Nice win for NBCUniversal, owner of most of NBC Sports Philadelphia, which carries locally available games. Fun fact: 25 percent of NBC Sports Philly is owned by the Phillies.)<\/p>\n

\ud83d\udc55 Fanatics:<\/strong> It owns Topps, which technically scooped everyone with the LeBron news<\/a>. The James No. 23 Sixers jersey available via Fanatics has sold out and will likely continue to, until every Philly fan who wants one has one. (Also, good news for indie merch companies with NBAPA licenses and\/or your local Philly\/Etsy bootleg merch operator.)<\/p>\n

\ud83d\udcca Prediction markets:<\/strong> More than $200 million sloshed around Kalshi, Polymarket and the others as onlookers tried to guess where LeBron could end up. Based on the odds<\/a>, a small percentage of people walked away with all of it.<\/p>\n

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\ud83c\udf99\ufe0f Rich Paul:<\/strong> The most intriguing detail from our inside story<\/a> on how LeBron ended up in Philly was the idea that team exec Bob Myers\u2019 appearance on the podcast of LeBron\u2019s agent \u2026 might have helped?<\/p>\n

\ud83d\udcdd Tony Jones:<\/strong> My colleague at The Athletic who covers the Sixers suddenly has the most exciting and envy-inducing beat in the newsroom.<\/p>\n

In fact, I loved Jones\u2019 early dive<\/a> into the local impact of James\u2019 signing: \u201cIf he wins big, Philadelphia will back him unlike anything James has seen outside of Cleveland. He has two seasons to make Philly his town.\u201d<\/p>\n

Ironically, LeBron \u2014 at $3.8 million for his season salary \u2014 is earning the most relatively modest portion of this windfall. But between his partnerships with companies like Fanatics, his longtime entrepreneurial zeal and his net worth north of $1 billion (not to mention the potential legacy gains of delivering wins in yet another city), he will be just fine.<\/p>\n

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{“endpoint”:”https:\/\/api-prd-nyt.theathletic.com\/graphql”}<\/p>\n

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Get Caught Up<\/h2>\n

Big talkers from the sports business industry:<\/em><\/p>\n

Ohio State and Notre Dame\u2019s jersey patch jackpot:<\/strong> Yesterday, the Buckeyes went first<\/a>, with JP Morgan Chase in a deal reportedly valued at $17 million per year. That left observers gobsmacked \u2026 for a few hours, until Notre Dame came out with its jersey patch deal (SoFi) for a reported $18 million-$20 million<\/a>. Staggering. That\u2019s right around what the top teams in the NBA command for their jersey patches.<\/p>\n

(Remember: The Big 12 just sold a sponsored patch on EVERY conference member\u2019s football and basketball jerseys for $20 million total.)<\/p>\n

More on this below.<\/em><\/p>\n

FIFA\u2019s $20 billion commercial spin-off:<\/strong> Fresh off minting cash from the 2026 World Cup, FIFA is looking ahead to new ways to mine the event: \u201cFIFA Forward Enterprises\u201d will be a commercially focused newco managing FIFA\u2019s big events (including the World Cup) and sell 21 percent of itself for more than $4 billion<\/a>, investment reportedly led by Josh Kushner, whose Thrive Eternal fund previously took a stake in the San Francisco Giants.<\/p>\n

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The blowback is real: \u201cThe soul and governance of football are not assets to trade \u2014 especially with zero transparency as to who gains financially,\u201d UEFA, the European association of football leagues, said in a statement. \u201cNone of us are the owners of football. It is not FIFA\u2019s to sell.\u201d (Welllll: FIFA does control \u2014 and already sells, in many other ways \u2014 the World Cup, just like \u2026 UEFA controls\/sells the Champions League?)<\/p>\n

UNC football\u2019s management debacle:<\/strong> \u201cHere\u2019s what we do know about (GM Mike) Lombardi\u2019s time<\/a> in Chapel Hill: Arrogance plus incompetence is a lethal combination.\u201d \u2014 Bruce Feldman<\/p>\n

MLB labor battle, cont\u2019d:<\/strong> The league proposed a \u201c50\/50\u201d split. The contentious part is a split of what? (The league IDs a LOT of \u201cexpenses\u201d that come off the top before a split.) Highly recommend Evan Drellich\u2019s full reporting on this<\/a> to get a handle on what will be the crux of the dispute.<\/p>\n

(Tangentially related: Stanford football players are testing the waters<\/a> of labor organizing themselves.)<\/p>\n

More on the ESPN layoffs:<\/strong> \u201cIt might just be the reality of the digital media world\u2019s impact catching up to ESPN. But when there is no room for David Lloyd, Stephania Bell, Charles Davis and the rest, it says something<\/a> about what type of team you are building.\u201d \u2014 Andrew Marchand, who broke the initial story.<\/p>\n

Cathy Engelbert vs. WNBA players, cont\u2019d:<\/strong> \u201cEngelbert might never be considered as chill, down for the cause or the kind of boss the players would want to sit down with and sip a \u2018Stud Bud\u2019 cocktail. But last we checked, the WNBA is booming.\u201d \u2014 Candace Buckner, who adds: \u201cNo offense to these elite athletes, but a commissioner was never meant to be a camp counselor<\/a>.\u201d<\/p>\n

Other current obsessions:<\/strong> The Yankees\u2019 newest George Costanza bobblehead<\/a> \u2026 Angel Reese\u2019s Barbie collab<\/a> \u2026 Former NY Met Jos\u00e9 Iglesias going to Broadway<\/a> \u2026 Mayo\u2019s All-Ireland 75-year-old curse-breaking<\/a> \u2026 Mark Cuban investing in the A\u2019s<\/a> \u2026<\/p>\n

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What I\u2019m Wondering<\/h2>\n

More on the college jersey-patch explosion<\/strong><\/p>\n

I can point you to a handy explainer<\/a> of the jersey patch basics, but to dive into why this is inevitable everywhere, I also want to share insights from my colleague Antonio Morales, who really dug into this<\/a> today.<\/p>\n

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\ud83d\udcac \u201cWhen push comes to shove, it\u2019s difficult to envision how (programs) will resist the payday that comes with a jersey-patch agreement \u2014 especially now that it costs $40 million or more to build a roster to compete at the highest levels of college football.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cNotre Dame and Ohio State \u2014 and the others that surely will follow \u2014 will try to uphold their winning standards by leaning into every possible competitive advantage. And while some fans might not like it, you know what they hate more? Losing.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Grab Bag<\/h2>\n

Data Points<\/strong><\/p>\n

\ud83c\udf9f\ufe0f 19,783<\/strong><\/p>\n

Attendance at last weekend\u2019s 2026 WNBA All-Star Game in Chicago, the first year the WNBA had more attendees at its All-Star Game than the NBA did (15,973).<\/p>\n

\ud83c\udf93 18<\/strong><\/p>\n

Number of college hoops players (that we know of<\/a>) who are making more money this upcoming season than LeBron\u2019s $3.8 million salary.<\/p>\n

\u26bd $1.39 billion<\/strong><\/p>\n

That was Real Madrid\u2019s revenue for 2025-26, its latest world record<\/a> for a football club.<\/p>\n

Name to Know: Jackson Koivun<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u26f3 \u201cHe says his superpower is his mindset, not his talent. I believe him.\u201d \u2014 Gabby Herzig, on golf\u2019s 21-year-old mega-phenom<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\ud83d\udcfa One more: Luke Kuechly<\/strong>, the next great NFL TV analyst. Per Marchand<\/a>, the 2026 Pro Football Hall of Famer is locked in as Netflix\u2019s No. 1 NFL game analyst, starting with the streamer\u2019s Week 1 game in Australia. He will impress fans watching for the first time, and he has as high a ceiling on TV as anyone working right now.<\/p>\n

Peak of the Week<\/strong>
\nElise Devlin asked 13 athletes for the best mental advice they ever received. Some great answers here<\/a>. Couple of my favorites:
\n\u2022 Steph Curry: \u201cNext play.\u201d
\n\u2022 Jason Kelce: \u201cEmbrace losing.\u201d
\n\u2022 Larry Fitzgerald Jr.: \u201cSleep is underrated.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2018Name-Dropped\u2019 Bonus!<\/strong>
\nHuge thanks to all who accepted the \u201cMoneyCall Email Forward Challenge\u201d last week! With gratitude, here is the first batch of name-drops: Brooke Hanshaw, Gordy Woelper, Chuck Connell, Tom Smith, Peter Evangelista, Kevin O\u2019Rourke, Matt Dishongh, Joseph Silva, Michael Lapin, Dave Lucas, Rob Quigg, Scott Greenwald, Dawn Gerdt, Scott McNevan, Chet Justice, Kent Miner, Mike Ivcic, Ned Goddard, Taylor Birks, Karen Hartman, Westby Castpersen, Clyde Foster, Dan Smith, Karen Roman.<\/p>\n

Beat Dan in Connections: Sports Edition<\/strong>
\nPuzzle No. 674
\nDan\u2019s time: 00:37
\nTry the game here!<\/a><\/p>\n

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Worth Your Time<\/h2>\n

Highly recommended business-adjacent reads for your downtime or commute:<\/em><\/p>\n

Behind the scenes at Fanatics Fest:<\/strong> What happens when you walk around Fanatics Fest with Fanatics founder Michael Rubin? Larry Holder found out<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Three more:<\/p>\n

\u2022 The rise of Frank \u201cThe Tank\u201d Fleming<\/strong> and the big business of being mad at the Mets<\/a> (via Sam Blum)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Why the New York Giants are in West Virginia<\/strong> and how they turned the Greenbrier into their home away from home<\/a> (via Charlotte Carroll)<\/p>\n

\u2022 Asli Pelit\u2019s \u201cDown to Business\u201d:<\/strong> Can a private equity deal (featuring Pau Gasol) accelerate Spanish women\u2019s soccer?<\/a><\/p>\n

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\ud83d\udceb Back next Wednesday! Text your colleagues this link<\/a> so they can get MoneyCall every week for free. And check out The Athletic\u2019s other newsletters<\/a>, too.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Welcome back to MoneyCall, The Athletic\u2019s weekly sports business cheat sheet. First, a quick favor to ask of this community: If you have colleagues, friends or family who might enjoy this weekly analysis of the latest in money, power and attention in sports, can you take 10 seconds and forward this link to them with […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[226,241],"class_list":["post-2068045","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-crawlmanager","tag-nytimes-com"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2068045","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2068045"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2068045\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2068045"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2068045"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/analyse.optim.biz\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2068045"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}