Diamond Sports to Emerge From Bankruptcy With 27 Teams

By Phillip Swann
The TV Answer Man –Follow me on X.

Diamond Sports plans to emerge from bankruptcy in the next few weeks after a Texas bankruptcy court judge today approved its plan for reorganization. The order comes 20 months after the regional sports network company first declared bankruptcy.

As part of the new plan, Diamond Sports’ FanDuel Networks (formerly Bally Sports) will be the regional TV carrier of 27 MLB, NBA and NHL teams. The list includes six MLB teams which Diamond Sports recently negotiated new terms: the Atlanta Braves, Tampa Bay Rays, Miami Marlins, Detroit Tigers, St. Louis Cardinals and Los Angeles Angels. Diamond Sports said in court papers that another MLB team may be added and that is believed to be the Kansas City Royals.

The new Diamond Sports lineup would seem to end MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred’s plan to sell a bundle of regional sports rights to a network such as ESPN although the league could sell a smaller package of teams no longer carried by DS including the Padres, Diamondbacks, Guardians, Twins and Brewers. However, the smaller plan would likely be considerably less lucrative for MLB.

Diamond Sports earlier this year renegotiated deals with the 21 NBA and NHL teams.

In related news, Diamond Sports announced that its FanDuel broadcasts will soon be available in market on Amazon’s Prime Video as an add-on subscription. The companies have yet to announce pricing details.

In addition, FanDuel on December 5 will start offering single game broadcasts for $6.99. It’s unclear which teams will be available as single game purchases.

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The TV Answer Man is veteran journalist Phillip Swann who has covered the TV technology scene for more than three decades. He will report on the latest news and answer your questions regarding new devices and services that are changing the way you watch television. See the bio for Phillip Swann here.