When Fergus McCann sought control of Celtic 21 years ago, he saw untapped potential that could be realised by means of injecting both attention and cash.
David Low crunched the numbers and converted the Canadian's pitches into projections. Now the co-owner of Glasgow Rocks, the Glaswegian financier foresees similar net gains in basketball if the right plays are drawn up.
Centrally involved in the British League's current due diligence of a proposed £30 million-plus investment from an American equity fund, Low has already imagined how additional backing could raise the bar at Scotland's only professional club. "That would mean more in the front office, as well as on the court," he confirms. "The objective would be to get higher revenues to get a better team out on the floor. My background's ion soccer. We don't spend more than we earn. But if we earn more, you'll see more spent on the side."
There have been alternative direct approaches, he adds, both to the Rocks - who host Surrey United this evening - and the league as a whole. Yet the obvious flaw in the existing proposal is that it is predicated on rapidly achieving average attendances of around 6000 throughout the BBL, numbers not seen since the sport's heyday 20 years ago when free tickets were thrown around like confetti.
The inevitable retreat took those who survived back to unambitious abodes in leisure centres with sparse seating. If basketball's top tier is to grow again, then money-spinning facilities like the Emirates Arena must be the norm, not an exception, Low asserts.
"Any business model has to take into account you can only play in a location with an arena and the amount of tickets you can sell - and the revenue generated - is a very important part of that," he claims. "Television revenues can take care of themselves. You don't have to go to a game to take care of that. I see most of the future revenues coming from multi-media, from TV, rather than live attendances. But there are very few leagues in Europe that have average attendances of more than 5000. That's realistic for a Glasgow franchise, a London franchise. But without the arenas, it doesn't stack up."
Those without the capacity to upsize may find themselves cast adrift in this brave new commercial world with major changes likely to be implemented ahead of the 2016-17 campaign. But, Low promises, the league will not simply grab the first fistful of dollars on offer without carefully hedging its bets.
"I call it placing everything on 32 Red, and keep your eyes shut and hope it pays off. What would happen, for instance, if any investor chose to walk away after two years, ITV Digital style? You could end up with a collapse of the professional game in the worst-case scenario. So you have to be aware and be cautious and make sure any partner has the sport's best interests at heart and won't walk away at the first sign of trouble."
- Newcastle Eagles will clinch their seventh title in ten years with a win over Manchester Giants tonight.
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