This Is Why Media Companies Shouldn’t Own Teams—Univision Might Lose Club América Games Because Of A Pissing Match

We never thought that there could a worse outcome from a media giant owning a major league franchise than when Disney released Angels In The Outfield, but here we are. The Mexican media conglomco Grupo Televisa has gotten into a row with Univision that will cost the latter the right to show three Mexican League team’s games–Club América, Necaxa and San Luis–over… nothing to do with soccer. (Bloomberg has the reason here.) Of course, the three teams are owned by Televisa, who will show the team’s games on their systems… which isn’t available outside of San Diego. So sorry US fans of those three teams (Club America obviously the biggest), but the Video On Demand revenues of crappy telenovelas are more important than you are.

Televisa — which owns Club América, Necaxa and San Luis — has filed a suit in Superior Court in Los Angeles in which it says Univision must stop its broadcasts of games involving the three teams by Sept. 28… Televisa is asking the court to invalidate a contract, which Univision asserts runs through 2017. Televisa said it is prepared to begin broadcasting the games of the three teams it owns.

We would try to get into a salient rant about the role media has played in dismantling the idea of sports the world has come to romanticize, but we’ve always preferred TV Azteca anyway. Why? Three words–Ines Gomez Mont.
Mexican League on Univision: Check Your Local Listings [NY Times]
Image [sharkspage.com]