If the deal does come off, Sportsworld is expected to provide a guaranteed income of A$25m ($13m/B14.4m) to the NBL for the next decade. It is also claimed that Sportsworld would take a 10-15 percent stake in the league.
Andrew Lee, a sports and gaming analyst at leading broker Dresdner Kleinwort Wasserstein would strengthen Sportsworld’s portfolio. “A 10-year lease would give Sportsworld sufficient time to drive and extract value from the sport. We would have concerns if the deal was shorter given the long lead times involved in building up an event and negotiating highly lucrative TV and sponsorship deals.”
The deal has not been confirmed by the company although it admits it is ‘in talks’ with the NBL.
Sportsworld Media, the London-based sports marketing group, is rumoured to be on the brink of being appointed as the media and marketing agent for the Australian National Basketball League (NBL).
