A unique and innovative regular season men’s basketball event to be held in Las Vegas later this year is expected to be finalized in the coming weeks, CBS Sports reported. Its selling point is of A major factor that has dramatically changed college sports over the past three years is the compensation of players’ name, image, and likeness rights.
The game will be held in November as part of an event called “Players Era Festival,” which will also include live music and other fan attractions in the glamor of the Las Vegas Strip during Thanksgiving week. As a first in college sports, the event will also include his $1 million NIL payment to eight participating schools. Additionally, officials told CBS Sports that they have future revenue opportunities through long-term NIL contracts.
Alabama, Creighton, Houston, Notre Dame, Oregon, Rutgers, San Diego State and Texas A&M have all committed to the tournament, according to officials. Creighton was the last school to participate. Officials told CBS Sports that he officially committed on Friday. The Blue Jays signed a three-year contract with the event. Creighton was previously scheduled to play in the loaded 2024 Battle 4 Atlantis Field. A source told CBS Sports that after Creighton first published this article on May 7, one spot had not yet been taken, so he pursued the opportunity. As a result, the Blue Jays will have to pay a buyout to leave Battle 4 Atlantis MTE.
Another source says Battle 4 Atlantis organizers are currently trying to recruit a Big East team to replace the event. The powerhouse team drawn from one of college basketball’s most prestigious schools, MTE, speaks to the power and appeal of the Players Era Festival. Officials said rumors spread Saturday that Creighton had withdrawn from the Bahamas-based tournament, sending shockwaves through the university community.
As for the Players Era Festival, it’s not just a one-year event.
Officials told CBS Sports that the plan is to double the size of the field, with a goal of 16 teams starting in 2025. Duke, Gonzaga, Kansas, Michigan, Syracuse and Virginia are all in talks to potentially compete in 2025. Officials from several schools in that group told CBS Sports they plan to participate if the event is extended beyond 2024 and the 16-school tournament is held as planned. If they opt in, most (if not ultimately all) of the schools playing in 2024 will be on board, many of whom have already signed three-year deals, according to sources. That’s what it means.
Event organizers are in the final stages of negotiations with MGM Resorts International to host the match at any or all of three major venues: T-Mobile Arena, MGM Grand Garden Arena and Michelob Ultra Arena. ing. The tentative schedule calls for games to be played on November 26, 27 and 29, with Thanksgiving off. The eight-team 2024 format has not yet been determined. Organizers are still considering whether to hold one eight-team tournament slot or two four-team multi-team events (MTEs).
If there are two four-team formats, officials say such combinations are planned, with Alabama (SEC), Houston (Big 12), Notre Dame (ACC) and Rutgers (Big 10) participating. I will do it. Creighton (Big East), Oregon State (Big Ten), San Diego State (Mountain West), and Texas A&M (SEC). Per NCAA rules, teams from the same conference cannot play each other in his MTE.
This tournament is unique in that $1 million will be awarded to each participating school’s NIL population. Additional significant NIL opportunities (likely close to $1 million more) will only be awarded to the winner or winners of the event, depending on the final bracket format. That money will then be distributed to the athletes by the organization. Athletes must participate in multiple off-court activities to earn that NIL money while in Las Vegas. NIL’s return-for-money deal is a key feature of the festival and the core of its appeal. Pay-for-play remains a violation of NCAA rules. However, athletes can The pitch here is that you get paid for NIL work that involves the actual game.
“If you have an event that involves an insane amount of money and donor fatigue isn’t involved, how can you not participate in this?” said one coach attending the Players Era Festival. told CBS Sports. “We don’t have any decisions that aren’t NIL-driven. I’m going to play in the parking lot at Mandalay Bay. Just a little bit of checking to clear.”
The basketball-focused festival is put on by New York-based production company Everwonder Studios. The tournament is financially supported by Redbird International Media Investments, part of Redbird Capital Partners, a multi-billion dollar investment firm. RedBird IMI is an investment consortium majority-owned by the United Arab Emirates. It is led by former CNN CEO Jeff Zucker. FrontOffice Sports first reported on the event in March. Officials said an official announcement is expected within the next 10 days.
Broadcast rights have not yet been officially secured. Games are expected to be distributed on streaming services rather than traditional terrestrial television. The event has come under intense scrutiny and faced backlash from many in the industry. That’s because the emergence of this event poses an existential threat to the traditional November/December MTE television model that has become more prominent in the college basketball world over the past 15 years. Some schools joining in 2024 broke previous agreements with other MTEs, leading to further discord.
Officials said event organizers assured everyone involved that the Players Era Festival will be held in accordance with NCAA rules.
“We are committed to making sure this is fully compliant,” the official added.
Because the Players Era Festival is aggressively advancing the ever-changing NIL era of player empowerment, and because it has tens of millions of dollars in private equity funding, many in college athletics are concerned about its long-term prospects. are skeptical about its financial viability. Traditionally, even the best of his MTEs does not have a large profit margin. The most high-profile regular season events are expected to bring in $1 million to $2 million. This would also mark a major change in the college basketball world as private equity investments affect how teams schedule, which could impact how his MTE operates in the future.
But participating schools see an opportunity to make a difference at a time when the program is desperate to raise money to strengthen its recruiting capacity and increase NIL’s war chest. please think about it. Many of the top-end 2024 transfers over the past month have been committed to more than $1 million and committed to various programs, officials said.
“I’ll play on Knick Jr., I’ll play on YouTube, it doesn’t matter,” the coach, who was scheduled to play at the event, told CBS Sports. “Everything else passed our compliance odor test all the way through. We haven’t encountered any roadblocks that say a definitive no.”
“As long as they comply with the regulations, our administration is fully committed,” said another coach who attended the tournament. He later said, “If you’re invited, you’d be foolish not to do it.”
Intersport, a respected and established organization in the sporting events space that annually helps host the CBS Sports Classic, Fort Myers Tipoff, and many other events, will be the tournament organizer. Seth Berger is the tournament director. Berger, 56, has been active in the basketball world for many years. He is a high school coach in Philadelphia, and most famously he is the one who founded And1. As a prep coach, Berger won four state titles and coached former five-star prospects Mohamed Bamba and Cam Reddish. Mr. Berger is the primary recruiter for the team to participate in events in 2024 and beyond.
NCAA rules prohibit schools from playing the same MTE more than once every four years. That’s why the same high-profile program doesn’t attend the Maui Invitational in back-to-back or even once in three years. As a workaround, the organizers of the Players Era Festival intentionally separated out different MTEs with different names in order to bring back many of the same teams over multiple years while technically hosting separate events. and trying to play in a different Las Vegas arena.
“We’re turning this into NBA All-Star Weekend for the NBA,” one event official said. “This week will be a week of celebration for the college basketball world.”
Officials said the players will also be eligible for a permanent 10% stake in Players Era, meaning that if Players Era continues to grow as an asset, college athletes will continue to invest in the company. First of all, you will be able to earn income. EverWonder Studio aims to expand its presence in the live sports arena in the coming years.
“The concept is for NIL activities and is focused on long-term value rather than one-time exchange,” the person said. The festival is also considering incorporating a financial literacy program for all teams/players involved.
EverWonder Studio has produced documentaries and docuseries for Netflix, Apple+, and Disney. He also produces the CMA Awards, NFL Honors, and Oscar Red Carpet shows.
There has been talk of a proposed 16-team tournament for 2025 in a FIFA World Cup-like format, with group stage play, but the feasibility of that model remains uncertain. If this event plays out as expected, it could spark the beginning of a trend that will change the landscape of college basketball for the rest of the decade, if not the rest of the decade.