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![FSU Legends Sixth Street Talks Private Equity](https://cdn.statically.io/img/www.sportico.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/07/FSU_6thStreet_Legends.png?w=1280&h=720&crop=1)
Florida State University has spent the last year in talks with private equity giant Sixth Street about a possible cash infusion. On Wednesday, the university announced a new 10-year expansion of its relationship with Sixth Street-owned Legends, the sports venue operations and experiences company.
The partnership is aimed at increasing revenue opportunities for Seminoles athletics, which has become a poster child of sorts for the modern college sports money panic. As power concentrates in the Big Ten and SEC, the school is suing to try to exit the ACC early and is exploring many different avenues for trying to close the revenue gap between itself and rivals in those leagues.
One of those avenues has been exploration of a potential private capital infusion. As Sportico was first to report, FSU retained JPMorgan Chase to run its talks with institutional funds. Administrators spoke with multiple firms but talks eventually narrowed to just Sixth Street, with the two sides exploring the creation of a NewCo that would hold FSU’s commercial rights and take on outside investment.
FSU “understands the importance of aligning revenue streams to position for success in the new collegiate landscape,” Mike Behan, president of Legends College, said in a statement. “The recent NCAA settlement has further emphasized the need for universities to explore innovative ways to optimize their commercial potential.”
Financial specifics of the Legends relationship weren’t included in the formal announcement, which does not mention Sixth Street by name. The deal does not involve Sixth Street’s private capital team, a spokesman for the firm said in an email. A representative for FSU didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.
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Wednesday’s deal builds on a prior relationship between the school and Legends. The company is a premium seating partner in the $260 million renovation of FSU’s football stadium, and it currently manages hospitality, concessions, catering and clubs for the Seminoles.
This deal adds multimedia rights—a catchall terms that covers many licensing deals, sponsorships, advertising and broadcast opportunities not covered by the conference. Legends said in the announcement that it had formed Florida State Global Partnerships, and will hire a staff to support the collaboration.
While it’s unclear how this broader relationship may affect the private capital conversations between the two sides, it highlights one aspect of the ongoing talks between many schools/conferences and institutional funds looking to invest in college sports. Many of those firms are looking to provide capital—and reap benefits on the back end—but they’re also pitching their strategic experience. Sixth Street, as an example, owns Legends, which has deep experience with managing the various ways pro and college teams commercialize their rights.
Co-founded by the Dallas Cowboys and New York Yankees, Legends was valued at $1.35 billion when Sixth Street took control in 2021. The group is a relative newcomer to college multimedia rights deals, a corner of the industry dominated by Learfield. Legends has other MMR deals with Notre Dame, Miami and Georgia Tech. It also provides athletic fundraising services to several university foundations. In 2022, for example, the University of Wisconsin Foundation paid Legends almost $2 million.
(This article has been updated in the first paragraph to clarify that Florida State announced the expanded partnership with Legends, and in the seventh paragraph to clarify that Legends was quoted in the announcement rather than Sixth Street.)