In the most recent ESPN Sports Poll, almost a quarter of all respondents picked the NFL as their favorite spectator sport. No real surprises with that result, except that it might be a little low, but it was the number two spot we found interesting.
Seems the great American pastime, Major League Baseball, was chosen by 13% of those surveyed in the poll. Yes, Baseball ranked ahead of the NBA, which came in with 9.6% of the vote, college football at 7.1% and college basketball at 4.6%. The NHL was the game of choice for 3.8% of respondents. NASCAR had 3.5%.
Maybe the surprising popularity of baseball can shed some light on the extraordinary numbers that will be delivered to MLB clubs in the blockbuster $500 million five-year licensing deal signed last week with seven U.S.-based apparel and cap companies.
The minimum guarantees would see each team owner pocket about $3.3 million per year through 2009. MLB senior vice president for business Tim Brosnan said in a published report that the deal represents at least a 70% gain over current expiring agreements. The total deal could be worth as much at $650 million to team owners if all companies hit projected sales goals.
Fourteen companies were involved in the bidding process, including a few that proposed plans to take over all licenses for MLB's apparel sales, caps and uniforms.
“While that's the direction other leagues have gone in, we decided to stay with companies that have a demonstrated track record in our sport”, said MLB president Bob DuPuy.
But it may have been those exclusive deals that the NFL and NBA signed with Reebok over the last two years that forced the hand of the bidding companies to pony up the big bucks much as the networks have done to land their ever-exploding broadcast deals over the last decade. It only took one new upstart network, Fox, to set in motion a process that has seen those deals get more mind-boggling with each renewal.
The MLB deal dwarfs the 10-year, $250 million deal the NFL signed with Reebok and the 10-year, $200 million deal the NBA inked with the athletic footwear and apparel company. The NHL aligned itself with CCM parent, The Hockey Co., in a 10-year, $150 million agreement that saw THC float a new IPO in Canada to pay the required up-front guarantee. But each of those leagues have supplemental deals for their merchandising businesses. The MLB deal announced last week covers all apparel and headwear for the league.
Proceeds from the MLB licensing agreement will only go to team owners, with no provision to share the goodies with players or the Major League Baseball Players Association, which makes its own licensing deals for players.
Majestic Athletic will now be the exclusive MLB Authentic Collection provider of on-field game uniforms, batting jerseys, outerwear, T-shirts, fleece and turtlenecks for all 30 Major League Baseball Clubs. They currently share the teams with Russell Athletic.
Faust Capabianco IV, president of Majestic, said that the company has been working towards this deal for 21 years. He said the deal wasnt about the money and Majestic won out because it is “committed to baseball”.
Capabianco would not give numbers, but said only that MLB was the “majority” of the companys business.
The long-term, global deal also sees Majestic become the exclusive supplier of replica game jerseys, replica batting jerseys and replica Cooperstown Collection jerseys for sale at retail.
But the big win for the company is that they will now have their logo on the game uniforms for powerhouse teams such as the Yankees, Braves, Red Sox and the Mariners, all teams that have been wearing Russell.
The company will also launch an exclusive line of MLB branded competition game uniforms and athletic apparel, marketed specifically for use by amateur baseball and softball players.
New Era Cap Company will remain the exclusive MLB Authentic Collection supplier of headwear to all 30 Major League Baseball Clubs as well as the domestic and international retail markets.
Nike USA, Inc. becomes the exclusive MLB Authentic Collection supplier of performance apparel and casual wear to all 30 Major League Baseball Clubs as well as the domestic and international retail markets.
Twins Enterprises, Inc. is the new exclusive supplier of non-authentic headwear to the domestic mass market.
VF Imagewear Inc. becomes the exclusive supplier of non-authentic fleece and T-shirts for the U.S. mass market, as well as Canada and Latin America.
Dynasty Apparel Industries won the bid to make non-authentic jerseys for the domestic and Latin American markets.
Drew Pearson International maintains the rights to produce and distribute non-authentic headwear throughout Europe.
>>> The loser here is clearly Russell Athletic, which will lose the ability to bill itself as a supplier to the MLB. While sales of apparel with MLB logos only account for only about one percent of company sales, the marketing benefits associated with marquee teams may impact the companys pitch as it sells its youth and high school baseball uniforms…
