Bally Sports Detroit set to become FanDuel Sports Network; what you need to know

Posted by author October 16, 2024 Sports

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The parent company of the regional sports network that broadcasts Tigers, Red Wings and Pistons games has reached a deal with FanDuel to take over the RSNs naming rights, perhaps as early as Monday.

Diamond Sports Group, which owns the stable of RSNs, revealed in a court filing in bankruptcy court in Texas this week that is has struck a deal with FanDuel, the online gaming giant, as its existing deal with Bally is expiring. That means, pending approval from the bankruptcy court, Bally Sports Detroit soon will be known as FanDuel Sports Network.

Customers will see very little change when the switchover is made, likely at some point next week. Channel numbers will remain the same. The content will remain the same. The on-air personalities will remain the same. The network will remain on platforms where it previously was accessible, and it will remain off platforms where it previously wasn’t. The subscription streaming app, now called Bally Sports+, will remain the same, just rebranded under the FanDuel banner.

This latest agreement is, at its core, a naming-rights deal, not an ownership change, though reports say FanDuel could receive a minority equity share in the reorganized company, if and when it emerges from Chapter 11 bankruptcy. FanDuel also will have an out in the deal, should Diamond Sports not emerge from bankruptcy.

What customers will notice after the switchover are new graphics, especially the primary color. Out will be the Bally red, in will be the FanDuel blue. There certainly will be more of a sports-gambling presence, too, as cross-promotion for FanDuel, the nation’s leading online sportsbook which, as part of the deal, will have to spend on advertising.

In Michigan, the RSN is expected to remove FanDuel logos and references during its coverage of high-school sports, including broadcasts of the state football championship games.

This will be the third name change for the RSNs since 2019, first Fox Sports, then Bally Sports. The name change comes as the NHL season is underway, and as the NBA season is about to begin.

Diamond Sports filed for bankruptcy protection in 2023, citing billions in unsustainable debt, amid the trend of cord-cutting and the increasing popularity of streaming ― just four years after purchasing the 19 RSNs, which at the time broadcast more than 40 Major League Baseball, NHL and NBA teams’ games, from Disney.

The RSNs now broadcast games for 22 NHL and NBA teams, many under renegotiated, lower-cost deals (including the Red Wings and Pistons) approved by a judge before the start of those seasons. Diamond Sports has only committed to broadcasting Atlanta Braves games from MLB moving forward, but is expected to renegotiate with several MLB teams, including the Tigers, to work out reduced deals. The Tigers are believed to receive $50 million a year under their current TV rights deal, a significant revenue stream.

Some MLB teams have decided, instead, to partner with the league itself on TV distribution for the 2025 season, including the Milwaukee Brewers, Minnesota Twins and Cleveland Guardians. The Tigers aren’t likely to go that route, in part because they’re tied to the Red Wings ― who, like the Tigers, are owned by the Iltich family ― and, in part, because any MLB TV deal wouldn’t be as lucrative for the team.

MLB has the proper infrastructure in place to produce and distribute game broadcasts itself, as it did with the San Diego Padres in 2024, while the NBA and NHL aren’t that far along.

Amazon had emerged as a potential streaming partner for Diamond Sports and its RSNs, but those talks, while not totally dead, have stalled.

The Tigers have declined to comment on their future for TV distribution, though plans certainly don’t include starting their own network ― an idea Tigers and Red Wings president and CEO Christopher Ilitch floated years ago, but he hasn’t publicly discussed that since. That would’ve been a massive financial undertaking.

Officials from Bally Sports Detroit have declined to comment on the FanDuel deal, and on Diamond Sports’ future with the Tigers. The Tigers last offseason made play-by-play man Jason Benetti an employee of the team rather than the network, in case there’s a separation between the team and the network.

Diamond Sports has said it hopes to emerge from bankruptcy by the end of 2025.

tpaul@detroitnews.com

@tonypaul1984