Warner Bros. Discovery is splitting itself into “two stand-alone publicly traded entertainment companies,” separating its HBO Max streaming service, movie studio and TV production business from its cable networks. One company “will be home to CNN, TNT, TBS and Warner’s dozens of cable channels, as well as its international holdings.” That entity, called Global Networks for now, will “hold as much as a 20% stake in the second entity,” which WBD is referring to as Streaming & Studios. It plans to “use earnings from that stake to pay off debt.” The move “effectively undoes much of Warner Media and Discovery Communications’ 2022 merger,” separating Warner’s marquee film and TV from Discovery’s reality and nonfiction fare. WBD President & CEO David Zaslav will remain as CEO of the Streaming & Studios company, while CFO Gunnar Wiedenfels will serve as CEO of Global Networks. Besides its U.S. cable assets, Global Networks will also “house the Discovery+ streaming service, CNN’s planned streaming service and U.S. sports properties, including Bleacher Report” (WALL STREET JOURNAL, 6/9). All of the sports rights “will remain with TNT even though HBO, the streaming service, does air certain games” (“Squawk Box,” CNBC, 6/9).

Private equity has finally come to college sports.

Elevate is set to announce the creation of the Collegiate Investment Initiative, a $500M initiative backed by PE firm Velocity Capital Management and the Texas Permanent School Fund, Sports Business Journal has learned.

The investment vehicle will provide a new funding source for collegiate athletics programs pursuing capital-intensive projects like facility upgrades and renovations.

Jonathan Marks, Chief Business Officer of Elevate College and Global Marketplace, said the platform has already closed funding deals with two Power Four athletic departments, though he declined to share details. He expects to complete another three to six deals by the start of this year’s college football season.

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Learfield is set to reorganize the presentation of its NIL offerings.

The company is slated to announce the launch of “Learfield Impact” a new brand vertical that rolls up its varying NIL efforts into a singular place, Sports Business Journal has learned.

An official announcement is expected on Monday.

“Our offerings in people, content and technology has developed significantly over the past three and a half years,” Learfield EVP/NIL Growth & Development Solly Fulp said. “And we figured we needed a strong brand, that umbrellaed all that.”

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The Oklahoma State athletic department has settled on “changes to some key seating areas” at Gallagher-Iba Arena for the 2025-26 season. The upper sections will “switch from reserved seating to general admission and a new premium option will be added courtside.” Loge boxes will be added in some courtside sections along one baseline as a premium seating area to “serve the overall goal of getting more fans closer to the court for men’s basketball games.” OSU AD Chad Weiberg mentions that the loge boxes will “have a minimal effect on student seating in the baseline sections.” The seating adjustments will “create a new revenue stream” for OSU, which has been a strategic focus in the wake of the House settlement. OSU is raising ticket prices in several sports and continues a “push to grow the athletic department’s donor arm, the POSSE” (THE OKLAHOMAN, 6/9).

Cincinnati is set to announce a five-year partnership with Ticketmaster, making it the school’s official ticketing provider, sources tell Sports Business Journal.

Financial details of the deal were not disclosed. An official announcement is expected on Monday.

Cincinnati fans will be able to access verified tickets on mobile devices, including through the official app powered by Ticketmaster, along with varying venue and event information for football, men’s and women’s basketball, baseball, volleyball and more.

Cincinnati’s partnership with Ticketmaster comes on the heels of launching “Cincy Sports Partners” — the school’s in-house sponsorship and multimedia rights operation — earlier this year.

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MLS and the players’ union “remain at odds” over compensation for the players with the three MLS teams taking part in the FIFA Club World Cup, which is set to start Sunday. The MLSPA said yesterday that the league issued a proposal Friday that “did not include any additional participation bonuses for the players and offered ‘below-standard’ back-end compensation.” The union also said that the league “asked for unrelated concessions to the collective bargaining agreement.” There is a provision of the CBA that caps the amount of prize money that can go to players at $1M. The MLSPA believes the players are “entitled to a bigger share of the funds.” The MLS said they have proposed in addition to the guaranteed $1M per team for qualifying, 20% of “all prize money earned from the group stage onward would be allocated to players” (AP, 6/8).

A source added that the MLSPA “demanded a larger percentage but has not formally responded to the league’s proposal.” In a statement, the MLSPA called the “actions taken by MLS as ‘retaliatory’ and unsatisfactory.” The two sides have yet to agree on new terms, making the current CBA the standard. A work stoppage by MLS players over the bonus dispute “isn’t possible due to provisions in the CBA.” Under the current CBA, players have agreed “not to strike over issues that fall within the scope of the agreement” (ESPN.com, 6/8).

Six rows at the North End of BMO Stadium in L.A. were “blocked off” during LAFC’s game yesterday against Sporting Kansas City, with a message that was “laid out in large white letters printed against a black background: ‘Abolish ICE.’” LAFC supporters “reiterated their position by not saying much at all and watching in silent protest” except for a few moments in the second half when they “intoned their displeasure with U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement.” Otherwise, homemade signs “did the talking for them.” The club said in a statement before the match it “stands shoulder to shoulder with all members of our community” (ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER, 6/9).

The Tigers-Cubs series hosted a combined 121,509 fans across a sold-out three-game stretch at Comerica Park, in what was the “second-highest for a three-game series in Detroit since 2015.” The only series to top it since was the Tigers’ playoff-clinching series against the White Sox to close out 2024. These kinds of crowds “haven’t been a guarantee at Comerica Park in recent years.” In 2024, the Tigers averaged just 23,824 in attendance for home games, a “mark that ranked 24th in MLB.” With the Tigers continuing their winning ways since their dramatic run to the playoffs last year, fans are “taking notice and filling the ballpark for big-time matchups” (MLIVE.com, 6/8).

In this week’s SBJ:

• With the 2026 World Cup in the U.S., Canada and Mexico just 12 months away, soccer writer Alex Silverman and the Sports Business Journal staff take a look at everything that FIFA and the countries need to do to be ready. Tick, tick …
• “F1 The Movie” starring Brad Pitt, opening later this month, is a marketing bonanza with a number of blue-chip brands aligning with the movie and sport, writes motorsports reporter Adam Stern.
• LA28 is picking up momentum as it targets its $2.5B sponsorship goal as Honda signs on in the automotive category. Olympics writer Rachel Axon has the details.
• He’s 93, but Bob Arum remains one of boxing’s top promoters and a worldwide dealmaker, reports combat sports writer Adam Stern.
• With the Pacers in the NBA Finals trying to finally bring a championship to the heartland of basketball, Indianapolis sits on top of the sport with interest in the Fever still red hot, reports NBA writer Tom Friend.
• Commissioner Rob Manfred intends to resolve MLB’s “Sunday Night Baseball’’ rights issue for the next three years by the All-Star Game in Atlanta. Who could get the rights? Baseball writer Mike Mazzeo provides the details.

“This word first appears in English in a letter explaining that ‘Candide’ is meant to ridicule the philosopher Leibniz.”