David Abrams of Velocity Capital Management outlines monetization opportunities in the carved-out X Games turnaround.
0:00 / 0:19exact quote · 19.1s
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“Historically just given the size of it for the game day events, whether it's the winter games in Aspen or summer games elsewhere, there were no game day revenues. So think of going to a baseball game where all the tickets are free and there's no hospitality and there's no parking revenues and there's no premium.”
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More from David Abrams
Disclosure
Why Velocity Capital Management refuses to invest directly in sports teams
“And we decided definitively we were not going to be investing in sports teams.”
David AbramsMar 23, 2023▶ 31:51David Abrams – Sports Ecosystem Investing at Velocity (Capital Allocators, EP. 303)
Disclosure
Velocity Capital Management invested in carving out the X Games from Disney
“Ultimately after a lot of stop and start negotiations and a long year-long discussion, it was carved out of Disney and the transaction closed in October, and given Arnie's historical knowledge of it and relationship, we invested in it in Velocity.”
David AbramsMar 23, 2023▶ 43:37David Abrams – Sports Ecosystem Investing at Velocity (Capital Allocators, EP. 303)
AssertionNot checkable as stated
ESPN operated the X Games without a dedicated sales or management team
“Inside ESPN, given the size of the X Games, the prioritization was on much bigger intellectual property. The NFL, UFC, Major League Baseball. So not a dedicated sales team to monetize the IP through sponsorship. So having a dedicated sales team, and by the way…”
David AbramsMar 23, 2023▶ 45:06David Abrams – Sports Ecosystem Investing at Velocity (Capital Allocators, EP. 303)
AssertionSupported
Apollo was founded to buy distressed assets originally financed by Drexel
“And a firm I eventually went to work for Apollo came out of Drexel, and their business was buying up the assets that they had been the investment bank for that actually raised the money and issued all the junk bonds.”
David AbramsMar 23, 2023▶ 2:33David Abrams – Sports Ecosystem Investing at Velocity (Capital Allocators, EP. 303)
Disclosure
Abrams sold his Yankees AAA team in 2021 but kept Crystal Palace
“We ultimately sold the Yankees AAA team at the end of twenty-twenty-one, and Crystal Palace, we still own.”
David AbramsMar 23, 2023▶ 23:56David Abrams – Sports Ecosystem Investing at Velocity (Capital Allocators, EP. 303)
Disclosure
Abrams admits Keemotion's premium pricing was a costly go-to-market mistake
“If we go back to Keymotion for a second, one of the lessons I learned, and it was certainly a mistake that I made, was our go-to-market strategy was pricing our product at a premium level, and in the case of Keymotion, we had by far the best technology and the…”
David AbramsMar 23, 2023▶ 40:48David Abrams – Sports Ecosystem Investing at Velocity (Capital Allocators, EP. 303)
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