Braves' 19 Million Dollar Tax Battle, Fight Night in NYC

Summary

Bloomberg Business of Sports — Episode Summary

Episode Title: Braves' 19 Million Dollar Tax Battle, Fight Night in NYC
Air Date: April 25, 2025
Host(s): Michael Barr, Vanessa Perdomo, Scarlet Fu, Damien Sassower
Featured Guests: Bill Allison (Bloomberg Reporter), David Abrams (Velocity Capital), Will Salthouse (Unique Sports Group), Eddie Hearn (Matchroom Boxing Chairman)

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Overview of Episode Theme

This episode dives into two pressing stories in the sports business world: (1) The Atlanta Braves’ fight against an expensive and unique tax provision affecting their finances; and (2) a preview of the high-stakes boxing scene in New York, with industry insights on the influx of international investment. The episode also examines the growth of private equity in sports, what’s at stake for player agents, and how new financial realities are reshaping major leagues and events.

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Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Atlanta Braves’ $19 Million Tax Challenge

Segment Start: [02:15]

• Background:
  The Braves, as MLB’s only publicly traded team, face a unique IRS provision that could cost them millions. This rule, originally intended to cap executive pay deductions for public companies, now unexpectedly ensnares teams with highly paid athletes.
• Why It Matters:
  The provision effectively means Braves can’t deduct high player salaries as business expenses, making their tax burden much greater than private teams.
• Unintended Consequences:
  “I just can't imagine Congress meant this to apply to a professional sports team. ... The rules are the rules and that's kind of how they're written.” — Bill Allison [05:02]
• Implications for Competition:
  Unlike private teams that can pay big for superstar talent (e.g., Mets, Dodgers), the Braves’ stockholder status puts them at a competitive disadvantage for signing top players.
• Attempts at Resolution:
  The Braves have hired lobbyists to seek a Congressional exemption. “[Congress] could write an exemption … but again, this is Congress, which is not the most functional organization on earth.” — Bill Allison [09:57]
• Alternate Solutions:
  Options include taking the team private, or simply trimming payroll.
• Comparisons:
  Other public sports companies like Madison Square Garden Sports (Knicks, Rangers) are also affected, but conglomerates like the Blue Jays’ parent can mitigate the hit with internal tax strategies.

2. The Rise of Private Equity in Sports

Segment Start: [15:31]

• Key Interview:
  David Abrams (Velocity Capital) and Will Salthouse (Unique Sports Group) discuss their new partnership and the role of private equity beyond mere team ownership.
• Business Model:
  Velocity focuses on investments in the broader sports ecosystem (agencies, data, services), not just owning teams.
  “We’re a very active partner. … He [Will] didn’t want just capital.” — David Abrams [24:35]
• Unique Sports Group’s Origin:
  Will Salthouse built the agency by giving a voice to overlooked lower-league footballers, using early data insights to spot talent.

  “I always scouted the minor leagues and found some players that really came through … and that’s where Unique Sports is today.” — Will Salthouse [18:07]

• Strategy for Growth:
  The goal is to offer independent agents a ‘home’ and scale globally, riding the international surge in soccer investments.
• On Economic Uncertainty:
  Despite market volatility and global tensions, confidence in the English Premier League’s long-term media rights ensures stable value for football-related private equity.

  “Irrespective of the economic environment, these are long-term meteorites deals … clubs will have a very consistent revenue stream.” — David Abrams [20:56]

3. International Investment: Saudi Arabia’s Impact

Segment Start: [25:19]

• Saudi Influence:
  Saudi Arabia is investing heavily in both talent and infrastructure across sports, aiming long-term for global relevance.
• Boxing and Football:
  Major transfer deals (e.g., John Duran to Ronaldo’s team) and headline events are shifting to Saudi, raising the stakes and available capital worldwide.

  “They’re not just … investing in talent. … They’re here to stay for the long term.” — Will Salthouse [25:43]

4. Fight Night in NYC: The Revival of Boxing

Segment Start: [28:51]

• Boxing’s Momentum:
  Eddie Hearn describes a boxing boom, powered by international events and star matchups, often eclipsing MMA’s current popularity.

  “Boxing’s really … rocketed over MMA in my opinion in the last 12 months, and it’s just nonstop every single week.” — Eddie Hearn [32:21]

• Upcoming Events:
  • Times Square, NYC: Invitation-only mega-event featuring Ryan Garcia, Romero, Haney, Ramirez, Lopez, and Barboza.
  • Riyadh, Saudi Arabia: Canelo Alvarez fights in a marquee event for Cinco de Mayo.

  “It’s just bonkers. The whole thing is bonkers and bizarre.” — Eddie Hearn [31:12]

• Ryan Garcia’s Return:
  After suspension for failed drug tests, Garcia is back, shining a spotlight on stricter anti-doping sanctions and the importance of maintaining sport integrity.

  “It was sad to watch … unfold and unravel on social media in front of your eyes. So I think it’s good to see him back in the sport.” — Eddie Hearn [32:51]

• Boxing vs. MMA:
  Currently, boxing dominates the digital/fan landscape due to MMA’s temporary lack of transcendent stars.

  “Right now, I think they’re lacking star power … all the narrative for fight sports … seems to be around boxing.” — Eddie Hearn [39:15]

• Global Expansion:
  Matchroom Boxing brings events from London to Sydney, Quebec, Mexico, Madrid, and beyond, coordinating with seasonal cycles like Riyadh Season in Saudi Arabia.
• Insider Perspective:
  Hearn emphasizes that sports’ cyclical nature will eventually swing back to MMA, but for now, boxing is in a “very hot period.”

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Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Congress and Tax Law:
  “You could word it … so that it’s very limited, but again, this is Congress, which is not the most functional organization on earth.” — Bill Allison [09:57]

• On Private Equity’s Approach:
  “We are a very active partner. … That was an important part of how Will and I organized the structure. He didn’t want just capital.” — David Abrams [24:35]

• On Saudi Arabia in Sports:
  “They’re … investing in infrastructure and really experienced people. … I can see it being one of the top three, top four leagues.” — Will Salthouse [26:47]

• On Boxing’s Popularity:
  “Boxing’s really … rocketed over MMA in my opinion in the last 12 months, and it’s just nonstop every single week.” — Eddie Hearn [32:21] “It’s just bonkers. The whole thing is bonkers and bizarre.” — Eddie Hearn [31:12]

• On Ryan Garcia’s Challenges:
  “It was sad to watch, you know, such a great young fighter … just kind of unfold and unravel on social media in front of your eyes.” — Eddie Hearn [32:51]

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Timestamps for Important Segments

| Segment & Topic | Timestamp | |-----------------------------------------------------|-------------| | Braves’ Tax Battle (with Bill Allison) | 02:15–13:42 | | Private Equity in Sports (Velocity & Unique Sports) | 15:31–27:38 | | Saudi Investment in Sports | 25:19–27:38 | | Boxing’s Comeback & NYC Fight Night (Eddie Hearn) | 28:51–40:52 |

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Tone & Flow

The episode balances analytical depth (on tax and business mechanics) with energetic, behind-the-scenes stories from leaders at the forefront of sports finance and entertainment. There’s a consistent focus on the disruptions facing entire sports ecosystems—not just on the field, but in boardrooms and on global investor spreadsheets.

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Conclusion

Listeners gain a front-row seat to the pressing financial, regulatory, and strategic issues shaping modern sports—from the Braves’ multimillion-dollar tax dilemma, to the strategies fueling private equity’s rise, and the evolving global fight for athletes and events. The episode is a must-listen for anyone following the intersection of business strategy and sports spectacle.

Transcript

[Michael Barr]

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[Damien Sassour]

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[David Abrams]

The business of sports can be intimidating.

[Bill Allison]

Or hard for a starter to break into.

[David Abrams]

We really appreciate when our owners are actually there, you know, with us through the journey.

[Damien Sassour]

Teams, ours especially, have been very intentional to diversify at all levels of the company.

[David Abrams]

I think we're in the golden years for the NFL and college football.

[Will Salthouse]

Our demographic reach has continued to expand.

[Damien Sassour]

This is going to be really unlocking.

[Scarlet Fu]

The streaming platform for sports fans.

[Michael Barr]

Sports valuations are rising.

[Will Salthouse]

We'll see when they peak.

[David Abrams]

You don't have to be the best.

[Michael Barr]

In your sport to make a whole ton of money.

[Damien Sassour]

Bloomberg Business of Sports From Bloomberg Radio.

[Michael Barr]

This is the Bloomberg Business of Sports where we explore the big money issues in the world of sports. I'm Michael Barr along with Vanessa Brunomo. My colleague Scarlet Fu and Damien Sassour would join us later on in the show. Coming up, we speak with matchroom Boxing chairman Eddie Hearn will talk about the big fight coming to New York City on May 2, plus get his take on the state of the sport.

[Eddie Hearn]

Just bonkers. The whole thing is bonkers and bizarre. But boxing right now, I mean, boxing's really, you know, rocketed over MMA in my opinion in the last 12 months and it's just non stop every single week.

[Michael Barr]

Plus, we'll check in on a leading sports private equity firm and one of its newest biggest investments. All that is on the way on the Bloomberg business of sports. But first, the Atlanta Braves. They are the MLB's only publicly traded club in America and they could get hit with a huge tax bill. For more on the unique situation facing the Braves and what it's trying to do to get out of it, we welcome Bloomberg's Bill Allison. Bill, welcome to the Bloomberg business of sports.

[Bill Allison]

Well, thanks for having me on. I really appreciate it.

[Michael Barr]

You wrote an article recently and it involves the Atlanta Braves. They are the only publicly traded major league baseball team in America and they have a problem because now they are facing off against the US Tax code and it threatens to cost the franchise millions. Can you explain what this is all about?

[Bill Allison]

There's a provision in the tax code that only applies to publicly traded companies. And this is something that goes Back to the 1990s to the, you know, when corporate greed was first becoming an issue. Bill Clinton ran and in 1992 promising to end excess executive pay obviously didn't quite do it. But one of the ways that they tried to do it was by preventing companies from deducting the salaries of their top executives. And this was passed in 1993. It's been around for years and years. It's been modified by different times. And most recently what they did is they added the top 5 paid non executive employees where, you know, people who are not like CEO and chief financial officer and so on. And that's sort of where the Braves come in because they're a publicly traded company. They're pay players 10 million, 15 million, $18 million. They give these big contracts so that they can compete and suddenly they can't deduct those as expenses anymore and that's going to increase their tax bill.

[Scarlet Fu]

You know, it's interesting because I could imagine that when they have, you know, put these bills in place and I feel like you mentioned it story that this wasn't really something they thought about, that it was going to affect professional sports teams.

[Bill Allison]

Yeah, it's really funny. I talked to a lot of compensation executives or consultants and tax lawyers and kind of everybody would say at the end of it, I just can't imagine Congress meant this to apply to a professional sports team. But you know, the rules are the rules and that's kind of how they're written. And the Braves have hired lobbyists, they're working on Capitol Hill to try to talk to Congress about this. But yeah, I mean, this is very much an unintended consequence of something that, you know, is really designed to raise revenue from companies that where basically the employees aren't the product. I mean, if you think about why people go to see the Atlanta Braves, it's to see Acuna, it's to see their players, and that's just like central to everything that they do yet if they're going to get taxed by for it.

[Michael Barr]

And this is the difference here, like a privately owned team like the New York Mets and Steve Cohen, that's why he can pay all this money to Juan Soto and this and that with $765 million over 15 years. But the Braves, you can't compete with that. And the Toronto Blue Jays, they are a publicly traded company, but they really aren't going to have a problem because according to the company spokesman, it's not going to have a meaningful impact from the US Tax provision.

[Bill Allison]

The Blue Jays have revenues and the, you know, they're part of a big conglomerate, it's a big media company. And one of the things that folks said about this is that, you know, with tax planning, you can set things up so that you move losses around and you can kind of offset these penalties. But the problem for the Braves is that, you know, about 90% of the revenue comes from the baseball team. They also own some property and some other things, but really it's the team that's the business. And so they don't really have that option where, okay, well, we're just going to take a huge loss in this division and that's going to offset what we would owe in taxes for these player contracts. And so that's really going to put a straight jacket on the Braves. And you know, as you said, you know, if you're sitting down with an agent, you've got to be thinking, you know, well, I'd love to sign this player, but, you know, I've got to think of the tax implications of it, not just my normal budgetary implications.

[Scarlet Fu]

When we're talking about privately companies like Michael mentioned there, the Mets and the Dodgers and the Yankees and all these teams who spend a ton of money, but they do have the luxury tax to deal with, right? That's MLB's tax that they put on them. Is that anywhere comparable? Like, is it kind of playing in the same ball game, but just for basically getting taxed by different people?

[Bill Allison]

I think the difference there is that, yes, you know, there is a luxury tax on and the Braves have been. I think this is the first year that they've been under the cap, but they were over it, you know, the last few years. I mean, they've obviously been a very successful team. They've won the World Series in 20, 21, series of division championships, their perennial playoff team, and they have like, you know, they're in the top third of payrolls and they were over that. I think the difference there though is, is that this is something that every team has to contend with, whereas the deductibility of their, of the, of the salaries of their star players is something that. They're the only team that's going to have to deal with this. This is one extra expense that nobody else in baseball has.

[Michael Barr]

Glad you said it's more than just baseball because it will affect Madison Square Garden sports. They own the NBA's Knicks and the NHL's New York Rangers. For some reason, they're going to fall under this same rule.

[Bill Allison]

Yeah, it's a publicly traded company which owns the Knicks and the Rangers, so it'll affect them, too. I reached out to them. They didn't want to talk about it. They didn't respond to or they, they basically didn't comment. As far as I can tell, looking at congressional disclosures, they have not hired lobbyists. So. But I'm sure this is going to be an issue for them. And one of the problems with the team is that, you know, that Madison Square Garden group and its owner, James Dolan and the Dolan family have a long history of, of basically getting special tax breaks and tax deals. And that kind of makes them a little bit more of an unpopular client in the way that I think that the Braves sort of are. Right.

[Scarlet Fu]

I wanted to mention there, you obviously talked about the Braves have hired lobbyists. So what are they trying, you know, to get the. To. To do? I mean, we've spoken kind of about maybe this isn't what Congress wanted with the professional sports teams being a thing. So are they trying to speak to people there and say, hey, can you just amend the law to not include sports teams? Or in your piece, you mentioned that both sides of the parties are kind of for this rule.

[Bill Allison]

Yeah. So I think that the simplest thing to do would be if Congress could write an exemption and something along the lines of, you know, this, this rule called 162m shall not apply to a professional sports team or to a corporation that makes its money from running a professional sports team. I mean, I, I think you could you word it, you know, could word it in A way that it's very limited, obviously that might make the teams, you know, more. Yeah, I seriously don't think there's any corporation that would go to the expense of paying billions of dollars for a team just to save money on the compensation. When you're talking about these big multinational conglomerates that this is supposed to apply to. But it would get the Braves off the hook in that sense for the taxes. And you would think that that's sort of the kind of thing that you would be able to do. But again, this is Congress, which is not the most functional organization on earth. So I think it's questionable whether that's going to happen or not.

[Michael Barr]

I was just going to ask that the principle of what you're saying is there, but the chances of this happening, I don't know how it's going to go through in this Congress.

[Bill Allison]

Exactly. And when you think about everything that the Trump administration has proposed, everything from reducing taxes on tips and Social Security benefits and there's a whole host of things that they've promised and while it's very important to the Braves and Braves fans, I'm wondering just how important an issue in Congress it's going to be that the payroll of a baseball team, the deductibility of it compared to all.

[Scarlet Fu]

Of these other issues, I guess that's fair, right? For sure. And while they're still playing well, it doesn't seem like it would matter to them at the current moment. But when we're talking about said, signing free agents and things like that is, is something, is a creative way for something to get around that adopting a Shohei Ohtani sort of a model where they sign a free agent but delay some of the contracts so that maybe not everyone is being hit in the same year. Is that, is that a creative way to get around it? So if this goes into effect, how, how do they, you know, get there?

[Bill Allison]

So that's, you know, that's a good question. There used to be an loophole in this rule where if you were paying people based on performance rather than, you know, basically an incentive laden contract, that, that wouldn't be taxable. But the problem there is which player is going to say, well, I'm going to take an incentive based contract rather than a guaranteed contract. I mean there's, you know, I think and of course that exemption no longer ex. So, you know, among the things they could do, they could try to take the team private. I mean, that would be one way to get out of this. You know, it's really just because they're publicly traded, that they're subject to this. Another option would be, you know, and I think that that's, I'm sorry, that's really the only option that they have unless Congress acts to do something to get them out of it. And of course, the other option, the last option is they could trim back their sales and not pay their players as much and you know, and basically, you know, assume that they're going to be paying these taxes.

[Michael Barr]

Bloomberg campaign finance reporter Bill Allison on his recent story on the Atlanta Braves. Always dropping some knowledge on us. We appreciate it. Thank you, Bill.

[Bill Allison]

Thank you both.

[Michael Barr]

Our thanks to Bloomberg's Bill Allison for joining us. Up next, we turn to private equity and a big new investment from a leading sports private equity firm for Vanessa Perdomo. I'm Michael Barr. You're listening to the Bloomberg Business of Sports from Bloomberg Radio. Around the World.

[Bill Allison]

Cup.

[Michael Barr]

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[Damien Sassour]

Bloomberg Business of Sports from Bloomberg Radio.

[Michael Barr]

This is the Bloomberg Business of Sports where we explore the big money issues in the world of sports. I'm Michael Barr along with my colleague Scarlet Fu and Damien Sassour. Vanessa Perdomo will be back later in the show. Velocity Capital Management is a top private equity firm with a big focus on sports. It just announced a new strategic investment in Unique Sports Group, a top five ranked UK based football talent representation agency. For more on the investment, the growth of sports in the private equity world and of course soccer. We welcome David Abrams, co founder and managing partner at Velocity Capital Management and Will Soldhouse, CEO at Unique Sports Group. David and Will, welcome to the Bloomberg Business of Sports.

[David Abrams]

Thanks Michael.

[Will Salthouse]

Thank you for having us.

[Michael Barr]

David, I'm going to start with you because with Velocity Capital Management you guys are a private equity firm when it comes to acquiring sports teams. And you guys have been in the business for 60 years, but especially now, you guys are like biscuits, honey and butter. You guys are a hot commodity.

[David Abrams]

That's a great combination. Biscuits, honey and butter. I'm gonna have to, I'm gonna have to try that. It's definitely an active time for us. I think as we've talked about, you know, we've chosen to not focus on investing in sports teams, but the activity in the broader ecosystem continues to be, you know, very active. And, you know, our partnership with Will and Unique Sports Group, you know, goes back three years and is a transaction where we're excited to talk to you about.

[Damien Sassour]

So Will, let's bring you into this conversation. Talk to us a little bit about what Unique Sports Group does and why it fits in to a private equity ownership model where there can be synergies and other points of commonalities between the different parts of Velocity's holdings.

[Will Salthouse]

Well, firstly, I'll answer the first question, which is what do we do? Obviously we represent footballers, you call it soccer players. We, we mainly that involves contractual negotiation and negotiating their contract between clubs. And I started on that journey 18 years ago by representing a friend and soon became a player in the space of lower league football where I saw a gap in the market. Players that weren't represented, given a. Given a voice, pretty much where a lot of people overlooked them and went straight to the top league. I looked at what calling baseball be called the, the minor leagues.

[Eddie Hearn]

Right, right.

[Will Salthouse]

So I always scouted the minor leagues and, and found some players that really came through and shot through those leagues to the Premier League and I kind of rode the wave of them. And, and that's where Unique Sports is today. Obviously we used a, I think a different type of strategy at that time, which was data which now is obviously very evident right the way through soccer and football. But I did that on my own by buying the local newspaper at the time and making my own data on the games and waiting outside players lounges and waiting outside training grounds and meeting up with guys and saying, look, could I give you a voice? Could I go and speak to some of these clubs on your behalf? Because I think you're an under market product and I was very lucky that I got in front of guys who had elite talent and they gave me the opportunity and we really never looked back from there. Since then, we've built, I'd say, the largest independent football agency in the world with the level of clients that we've Got on transfer market, the values, the number of agents, the number of transactions in the UK market. To answer the second question, where does Velocity and David's team fit into that? It's we're now on a journey where we've grown the business organically. We were looking for a partner that had the same vision really about Unique as what we did, which was, look, this is a business that can really scale. They've got something special. It's something that can go into a global structure with other verticals. And as soon as I sat down with David and the Velocity team, it was really clear to me that these guys just, they had exactly the same vision as I did for where we wanted to go. And I had various approaches that I'd kind of batted off over the 18 years from major sport management or entertainment businesses. And for one reason or another, we didn't do those deals. And it's obviously going to pay dividends now because we've now got our same principles, but now we've got more firepower as such to go into the market and look at agents like myself who are independent and giving them a home and a platform that they wouldn't have otherwise.

[Damien Sassour]

The needs of the business and the dynamics of the business are intact, regardless of what may be happening politically in the US or overseas in Europe. But I wonder how much the economic uncertainty that is really come across over the last three, four weeks has affected the negotiations or the timing of this deal. Did that come into play at all, David?

[David Abrams]

Well, Will, I'll turn over the question to you first on how you view tariffs and then I'll talk a little bit about our perspective.

[Will Salthouse]

Yeah, there's no tariffs on football.

[Damien Sassour]

There's no tariffs on football, but there's a lot of uncertainty and people are nervous and they don't want to commit to anything.

[David Abrams]

Right, yeah, that's Will's famous line. So he was perspective. One of the very exciting aspects of Unique is its incredible foundational business in the Premier League. The Premier League by far has the largest global meteorites deal and continues to grow internationally. The value of the international meteorites deal for the Premier League is significantly larger than all the other European football leagues put together. Right. And so irrespective of the economic environment, these are long term meteorites deals. That means clubs will have a very consistent revenue stream. And our perspective is as capital flows in to acquire teams and to grow their commercial operations, it's critical to be successful on the field. And Unique is effectively a partner to owners of professional football clubs on putting the best players on the field so they can succeed. So we didn't. Obviously, the economic environment is something that we're watching as a private equity firm, but it did not have a direct impact on the final structure and pricing of the deal.

[Vanessa Perdomo]

The Premier League, this transfer window, if my numbers are right, and for our audience, 370 million pounds spent during the winter window. Is that right? Talk to us a little bit about how you approach these transfer windows. How does it work?

[Will Salthouse]

What we're dealing with right now is kind of the flowing period, which you'd call the. Where clubs are looking at who they're going to take. And obviously at the moment we're speaking to many people and finding out, we call it requirements. And there'll be a requirement which will be a certain type of profile for each position, which a club will, or a manager in a recruitment team will work out what that requirement is in regards to. What is the general requirement of each player in each position and what do they want from that player? And then off the back of that, then the names will start to move in the next few months. And then as we get into the transfer window opening, and then it starts to get manic because obviously clubs go after their first targets. A lot of other clubs are obviously on the same first target. Then a club misses the first target, they're working on the second, and so on, so forth. And as we move down the transfer window, when you get into the last week, that's when complete bedlam and mayhem sets in, when people realize that they not got their fifth or sixth or even their eighth target and they're literally running round thinking, we need to fill positions. And that's where obviously the workload steps up for an agent right the way through the transfer window, you know, but look, clubs from when I started 18 years ago are far more organized and they're far more efficient than they've ever been at recruitment and have a bigger team and they're a lot more strategic. Whereas 18, you know, going back, back right the way through, they weren't as organized, weren't as strategic and wouldn't have as many people in the recruitment department. Obviously, now we've got so many different tools that have come into the game that have made it a lot more innovation, especially in recruitment. It's been completely dynamic over the last four or five years to how it used to be. The money ball, which you'd see, which you probably aware of, is very evident within the Premier League, you know, that concept.

[Vanessa Perdomo]

Are you seeing greater competition for sound investments in the space, or are you able to uncover more unique sports groups? Are there opportunities abound?

[David Abrams]

There certainly are a lot of firms that are focusing on this broader ecosystem. What we try to say is we stick to what we do and what we know best, which is being a very operationally focused private equity firm and partnering with fantastic founders and management teams. And I think the difference in a lot of the organizations that have come on the air and that you talk to is they're either. They're focusing on investing in sports teams, which we don't do. Some cases, they're just very passive minority investors in someone else's business. And we don't do either of those. We are a very active partner. And that was an important part of how Will and I organized the structure. He didn't want just capital.

[Michael Barr]

I know we're running out of time. One source of money is out there, and that's from Saudi Arabia. They just recently announced that they were going to invest a lot of money in boxing and bring it back to the level of the old Don King era. How much of competition is that when you're dealing with that much money, that is out there for you guys?

[Will Salthouse]

I think Saudi, as you've seen, obviously have the World cup approaching in. I think it's 10 years. I think if you look at what they're doing right the way through sport, they're here to stay. They're not just going investing in, in talent as far as players. They're actually investing in infrastructure. Sporting directors, CEOs and now stadiums, training grounds. They're taking it very seriously. And if the first one to say they're here to stay for the long term and it will take time. It's going to take time in the, in their national team to see, to see the changes and see the improvement. But I think in, in the next five to six years, you'll see how strong the league has been. I think each year it's going to improve. And look, me personally spending a lot of time in that market, obviously I just brokered the deal in January, which is the largest transfer deal of John Duran from Aston Villa. Who was he? Who's. Who's a young player at 21 who decided that he wanted to go and play on Ronaldo's team and drive it forward. And I know he's enjoying it.

[Bill Allison]

It.

[Will Salthouse]

So it shows the. It shows the intent from that of where they want to go. But I think I don't want to get away. I want to try and get away from that and not just buying players. They are investing in infrastructure and investing in really experienced people to drive, to drive everything forward. And I think I would say watch this space to where it can go. And I can see it being, you know, one of the top three, top four leagues in and it's quite exciting to be involved in speaking to owners and teams who are at a stage of building. And that's where obviously from my experience over the last 18 years, it's been great because we've been able to go in and advise in a consultancy capacity in a few places of our views on how things are in the outside world with football.

[Michael Barr]

Our thanks to both David Abrams and William Salthouse for joining us. David is co founder and Managing Partner at Velocity Capital Management and he is also former CIO of Harris Blitzer Sports and Entertainment and Will is CEO at Unique Sports Group. Up next, we turn to boxing. A big match coming up to the Big Apple next week for my colleagues Scarlet Fu and Damien Sassour. I'm Michael Barr. Stay tuned for more of the Bloomberg Business of Sports from Bloomberg Radio. Around the world.

[Bill Allison]

There are two kinds of people in the world, people who think about climate change and people who are doing something about it. On the Zero podcast we talk to both kinds of people. People you've heard of like Bill Gates.

[David Abrams]

I'm looking at what the world has to do to get to zero, not using climate as a moral crusade and.

[Bill Allison]

The creative minds you haven't heard of yet. It is serious stuff, but never doom and gloom. I am Akshat Ratty. Listen to Zero every Thursday from Bloomberg Podcasts on Apple, Spotify or anywhere else you get your podcasts.

[Damien Sassour]

This is Bloomberg Business of Sports from Bloomberg Radio.

[Michael Barr]

Thanks for joining us on the Bloomberg Business of Sports where we explore the big money issues in the world of sports. I'm Michael Barr along with my colleagues Damien Sassour and Vanessa Perdomo. There is a big fight coming to the Big Apple. On Friday, May 2, Ryan Garcia makes his long awaited return to the ring against Raleigh Romero. And here to get us excited about the bout. See what I did there. Plus, do a pulse check on the state of the world of boxing. We welcome Eddie Hearn. He's chairman of Matchroom Boxing. Eddie, welcome to the Bloomberg Business of Sports.

[Eddie Hearn]

Thanks for having me guys.

[Michael Barr]

Well, boxing and it's making a big comeback and I say that because just recently Saudi Arabia and the boxing body over there, they're putting a lot of money into boxing to bring it back to the level of the Don King era. Your thoughts about that first you got Saudi Arabia putting their money into it and boxing coming around playing big time with Muhammad Ali in the era that, I remember it very well as an old man. Your thoughts?

[Eddie Hearn]

Yeah, I mean I think boxing, to be honest with you, is, it's always hot. You know, every business is cyclical, every sport is cyclical. And for many, many years people have talked about, you know, boxing's dying, boxing's broken. I think it couldn't have been further from the truth. Globally the sport exists with a huge commercial presence. But of course when Saudi Arabia comes along with ambition and a lot of money as well and starts making some of the big fights, it lifts the entire ecosystem of the sport of boxing globally. And we've seen that, you know, and, and we've seen huge fights in Riyadh, we've seen those huge fights in America, in, in Britain. You know, we had Anthony Joshua 95, 000 fighting Daniel Dubois last September. This weekend we have been against Eubank65,000. I mean boxing's red hot. And, and obviously now with, with like you said, the influ influx of the Saudi Arabia investment, there's huge opportunities for everybody.

[Vanessa Perdomo]

Let's dig into it, Eddie. I mean Tottenham, you know, April 26, Connor Ben, Chris Eubank. And then I think in New York City, Michael Barr. May 2, Ryan Garcia against Riley Romero. I mean, talk to us a little bit, some of these matchups, I mean it is peak prime time here, is it not Eddie?

[Eddie Hearn]

Yeah, I mean it's really interesting the difference of the dynamics of the event. So next weekend's a wild one. On Friday night it, there's a Ring magazine event in New York. Now it's not a Madison Square Garden, it's not the Barkley center, it's in the middle of Times Square. Get out invite only with a couple of hundred people, you know, Ring Magazine, Turkey out of Shake Matchroom golden boy. We are shutting down Times Square for this kind of historic one off event that features Ryan Garcia against Rody Romero, Devin Haney against Ramirez and Teofimo Lopez against Barboza. Kind of all of these real big young stars of the sport. And if that wasn't enough, 24 hours later, Canelo Alvarez will fight for the first time in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia on the Saturday night early Sunday morning in Rickyad. Prime time for the American audience on Cinco de Mayo. So it's just bonkers. The whole thing is bonkers and bizarre. But boxing right now, I mean boxing's really, you know, rocketed over MMA in my opinion. In the last 12 months, and it's just nonstop every single week.

[Scarlet Fu]

That is somewhat of a hot take, but I feel like you did lay out some really good groundwork to, you know, prove your point there. I want to talk a little bit more about Ryan Garcia. You know, this is, you know, his first fight back after being suspended, and really he was America's biggest or one of, you know, the biggest top stars in boxing before that all happened and really made a name for himself on social media and things like that. So do you think, like, him having a comeback is great for the sport of boxing, or is it really a personal journey to get him back up top?

[Eddie Hearn]

Yeah, I mean, I think that obviously everything that happened to him, he made mistakes. And, you know, I think psychologically he, you know, had pretty much, I think some kind of mental and emotional breakdown on route. You know, you saw his antics across social media were just wild, really. And it was sad to watch, you know, such a great young fighter and personality and a great looking kid just kind of unfold and unravel on social media in front of your eyes. So I think that it's good to see him back in the sport. You know, he's served his band and he's ready to return and he's an exciting fighter and, you know, he's the kind of young fighter that's going to invigorate that younger audience. And that's as is a lot of the fighters on the Times Square show.

[Michael Barr]

Next week, I want to talk more about Ryan Garcia and what happened to him. He, according to the New York State Athletic Commission, he failed a drug test. So then the fight that he was in was ruled a no contest with Haney. Now the thing of it is, I wonder if the punishment was too much because first of all, he got suspended for a year and then he had to pay a $10,000 fine. And then the $1.1 million that he made, the commission ruled that it was going to the promoter. I just want to get your thoughts. I mean, it's. It's unfortunate what happened. And I'm just wondering your thoughts about the punishment in general.

[Eddie Hearn]

Yeah, I mean, the promoters for the event were golden boy. It's quite a bizarre thing for the money to go back to the promoters. It's quite bizarre and unique. But, you know, I think in terms of the fine, we have to really take a strict stance on performance enhancing drugs within the sport. You know, there's always the element of fighters that do get unlucky and sometimes there is contamination that can affect testing results. But nine times out of 10, the fighter is generally guilty or the team of guilty of some kind of cheating. So Ryan protests his innocence. I guess we'll never know. But at the same time, we have to make the sport as clean and safe as possible. So if that crime was in the uk, ucad, the UK Anti Doping Agency, probably would have banned him a minimum of two years. So one year, I think, you know, was, was fairly light in the respect of Ryan getting himself right and returning to the sport. So, you know, one of the problems was he failed his drugs test the day before the fight and on the night of the fight and you don't get those results back for a couple of weeks after. So effectively he went into the fight with those substances in his body, which of course is an unfair advantage, it would seem. And in turn, the New York State Athletic Commission ruled that it was a no contest. So although Devin Haney lost on the night, he actually remains undefeated. It's actually a wild turn of events across the board, but I feel as though it was handled correctly.

[Vanessa Perdomo]

Eddie, I know you've been in the business like your whole life, I mean, going back to your father, Barry Hearn, I mean, you've been the matchroom specifically since 2000. So promoting one fighter and losing him to another promoter, this happens all the time. And the reason I ask is because Shakur Stevenson, 23 and 0, 11 Kos. Is he still going to fight Zepita?

[Eddie Hearn]

Yes, he's fine. Zepeda July, just so you know, fight, deal with him. Okay, this is the final fight of our deal, so again, hopefully it can be extended.

[Vanessa Perdomo]

But so let's talk about Shakur Stevenson. I mean, he's got a fight coming up in July with William Zapita. 33, 0, 27 KOs. Both are undefeated, kind of risking it all to face Upita. What are your thoughts there? I mean, it's going to be obviously an awesome fight, but if he doesn't perform well, I mean, all bets are off. No?

[Eddie Hearn]

Yeah, I mean, it's a great fight. I think Shakur Stevenson is, is the best lightweight in the world. And you know, he's 27 years of age, he's a three division world champion, but more importantly, he's in a great fight with Zepeda. It'll be another Ring Magazine card in New York on July 12th. And I think it's the perfect fight for Shakur to really make a statement and then I think, go on and fight Shakur. Sorry, Javon Davis. I think that's one of the best fights fight in American boxing, But certainly Zepeda, a tough opponent, a dangerous opponent, and it'll be part of a huge night on July 12.

[Scarlet Fu]

So one of the other things, you know, I want to talk about, you got, you got to it a little bit. You know, when we were talking about having the fight in Times Square and you know, all of that excitement sounds really incredible. A lot of the fights you have coming up are New York, London and places like that. And not, it doesn't seem like, like Saudi Arabia's on the map as of right now on a couple of your more recent fights. Talk to me a little bit about spreading the love between other places other than just having every fight in Vegas and Saudi Arabia.

[Eddie Hearn]

Yeah, I mean, I think we're the only global promotional company in the world. So we stage over 30 events a year globally. So we just had a show in Sydney, we had a show in Quebec, in Canada. We had a show in Mexico recently. We're in Atlantic City last week, we're in London this week. So we're all over the world. In terms of the Middle east, it's quite cyclical. Riyadh season happens between October and March. Obviously, the weather is a lot kinder to the, the fans during that period as well. So it's reasonably quiet throughout those summer months. And then as we approach, I mean, Canelo Alvarez fights in Riyadh next weekend. And then after that, we'll be back in Riyadh in October for the start of what they call Riyadh season, which is kind of like their big commercial calendar for major sporting music, arts events. And yeah, a big focus at Matchroom is, like I said, just to be that number one global promotional company. All other promotional companies just kind of tend to operate in their respective markets, but we do it week in, week out all over the world.

[Vanessa Perdomo]

Vanessa, can you imagine Eddie's travel schedule? I mean, this is just bonkers.

[Eddie Hearn]

I want to know.

[Vanessa Perdomo]

I mean, you're on here and I mean, you're bouncing from time zone to time zone. And it's not just any time zone. These are like 10 hour flight. So it's like never know where you are.

[Bill Allison]

Exactly.

[Vanessa Perdomo]

So last question I have for you, Eddie. I mean, look, the sport of boxing, right, Obviously, mma, the influence, all of that good stuff. Talk to us a little bit about it. Do you still see it as a benefit to the sport? Do you see those two sports coming together? And also, if you could just tell a little, Michael Barr, he likes to gamble on sports and he's kind of looking for. He's just curious. He got some bouts coming up. What do you like here? What's going on?

[Michael Barr]

Boots on the ground. Boots on the ground. What do I do here?

[Eddie Hearn]

Yeah, I think like I said earlier, all sport is cyclical, and I. I think this is a very hot period for boxing. MMA has been hot for years. UFC is a fantastic business, but right now, I think they're lacking star power, if I'm honest, and, you know, the time of Khabib and, you know, Conor McGregor and these kind of standout big names. I think they're just going through a little bit of a, you know, maybe a little bit of a development period for those younger fighters coming through. And in the meantime, it seems like all the narrative for fight sports and digital conversations seems to be around boxing, which is a nice change, you know, and I'm sure MMA will be back, but right now, I think boxing's hotter than ever, and it seems to be controlling a lot of those conversations, you know, between sports rights holders, executives, but more importantly, fans online and as I said, those digital conversations.

[Michael Barr]

Could Garcia win a matchroom Top fighter? Jared Boots Ennis.

[Eddie Hearn]

For me, Jerome Boots Ennis is kind of our number one fighter in America. I think he's a pound for pound great fighter. I think he's a future pound for pound star. And Ryan Garcia is exciting. You know, he's. He's temperamental. He's a little bit out there sometimes, but he's dangerous. He's fast, he's dangerous, and he's great to watch as well. So I think Jaron Ennis against Ryan Garcia is actually a fight that could be one of the biggest in American boxing.

[Michael Barr]

Well, let's hope. I've got money itching in my pocket, man. I mean, thank you. Thank you. Eddie Hearn. See, I'm giving up all my secrets. Chairman of matchroom Boxing. Thank you again, sir.

[Eddie Hearn]

Thank you, God.

[Michael Barr]

Hey, thank you for joining us. For my colleagues, Damien Sassour, Vanessa Perdomo, and Scarlet Fu, I'm Michael Barr. Make sure to subscribe to the Bloomberg Business of Sports podcast. Find it now on Apple, Spotify, and all your favorite podcast platforms. Tune in again next week for the latest on the stories moving big money in the world of sports. You're listening to the Bloomberg Business of Sports from Bloomberg Radio around the world.

[Tom Keene]

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