The potential demise of the Bally Sports-branded regional sports network has been of interest to many in sports media for what it could create.
Diamond Sports Group — owner of the regional sports networks — missed a scheduled $140 million debt payment last month that signaled a likelihood the company would file for bankruptcy. The company has stated it has been making the intended rights payments to all of the 42 MLB, NBA, and NHL franchises it currently holds the television rights to — except one.
“We’ve been making our rights payments to teams with the exception of the (MLB’s Arizona) Diamondbacks, where we have exercised a contractual grace period in order to maximize flexibility, especially given that we do not have DTC rights,” a Diamond Sports Group spokesperson said. “We are continuing to broadcast games and are operating our business as usual.”
According to a report from John Ourand of Sports Business Journal, the grace period in the contract ends on Thursday, March 16th at 11:59 PM. Should Diamond Sports Group fail to make its payment to the MLB franchise by that time, its local television rights would likely revert back to the club and the league.
Ourand also posits that the deal between the two parties is labeled as “extremely favorable” to the team. He also points to the San Diego Padres, Cleveland Guardians, and Cincinnati Reds as franchises that also have contracts that could be labeled with the same sentiment.
