Could the MSG Networks and YES Network be headed for a potential merger? According to a report late Thursday night in the New York Post, the two networks could, in fact, be potentially moving to that conclusion as MSG Networks attempts to avoid bankruptcy.
Last month, Sphere Entertainment, who owns MSG Networks, reported financial results for the last three months that resulted in total revenue of $308.3 million, down 5.9% from the previous year. Furthermore, revenue attributable to MSG Networks, the regional sports network that televises games for the New York Knicks, New York Rangers, New York Islanders, New Jersey Devils, and Buffalo Sabres, finished at $139.3 million, which was down 5% on the year.
Additionally, according to the New York Post, MSG Networks is nearing a deal with JPMorgan where the lender will agree to reduce the Network’s debt by about $600 million, according to sources close to the talks.
The tradeoff for Knicks owner James Dolan, who owns Sphere Entertainment, is that he would reduce the rights fees MSG Networks would pay the Knicks and Rangers. As a result, this would increase the network’s ability to make its interest payments. MSG Networks and YES Network — which airs the Yankees and Brooklyn Nets — now partner on the Gotham Sports App, with access to both networks costing $41.99 a month.
Moreover, according to a report by Sportico last month, Sphere Entertainment and its lenders have reached various forbearance agreements in recent months due to MSG Networks being unable to refinance its debt. The $829 million debt outstanding was due last October, but the deadline has been extended multiple times, most recently to March 26 of this year. Earlier in February, the company made a $25 million principal repayment that reduced the debt outstanding to $804 million.
Initially, MSG Networks had a deadline at midnight on Monday to avoid bankruptcy, but it received an extension to yesterday as the network was attempting any last-minute deal that could strike.
According to public filings, MSG Networks is losing money partly because it paid $187 million in 2025 to broadcast Knicks and Rangers games as part of a 20-year agreement that ends in 2035.
Following the JPMorgan restructure, Dolan hopes to sell MSG Networks to potential bidders, according to sources at the New York Post. MSG Networks has been in default since October but has not been put in bankruptcy.
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