By Andy Marston, Sports Pundit
Everton and AS Roma owner Dan Friedkin has launched Pursuit Sports, a new umbrella group to unify his sports assets and explore expansion into North American leagues.
Pursuit Sports brings AS Roma, Everton, AS Cannes, and newly acquired London-based sports tech firm Insight Sport under one roof.
Former Fenway Sports Group exec Dave Beeston has been appointed CEO to lead strategy, operations, and M&A.
Friedkin is reportedly eyeing a franchise in one of the big four U.S. leagues (NFL, NBA, NHL, or MLB), according to Sportico.
Beeston stressed there are no plans for a top-down multi-club model; local executives will retain control of day-to-day decisions.
Why It Matters:
Multi-club ownership within football has increasingly come under fire across many parts of the world, and not without reason. Fans worry about feeder club dynamics, conflicts of interest, and the dilution of local identity. Just ask Crystal Palace fans after their team recently missed out on Europa League football (at least, for now).
However, the multi-sport model leveraged by the likes of Fenway Sports Group (FSG) which focuses more on operational efficiencies, has come under a lot less heat.
While its to-be-seen if that can truly be applied to Pursuit Sports, with a portfolio already containing multiple historic European football clubs, the ambition to leverage shared services such as sponsorship or tech in order to drive revenue (without eroding local identity) is a lot more palatable for fans and should draw less criticism.
It’s important to note that with the formation of Pursuit, they’ve also brought in an operator who’s done it before.
During Beeston’s tenure at FSG, he oversaw Fenway Sports Management, which sold sponsorships across the Red Sox, NESN, Liverpool, Penguins, PGA Tour, and Boston Common Golf to drive incremental revenues.
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