Chicago's Hoffman family buys Pittsburgh Penguins | LA's Olympic Gamble

Get up to speed with latest news impacting the sports business landscape in Chicago and beyond. 🗞️ 

🐧 Chicago's Hoffmann family agrees to buy the Pittsburgh Penguins Big-name acquisitions have never been a primary strategy for the Hoffmann family until now. The Hoffmann Family of Companies collectively owns over 100 companies, none of which are name-brand entities. That changes instantly with the Pittsburgh Penguins. Founder David Hoffmann has previously pledged to buy an NBA or NHL team. If the sale goes through, he’ll own a team that has a lot of upside. Despite Pittsburgh being a sports city and the Penguins' successful history, the team ranks near the bottom of the league in valuation, at $1.7-$1.8 billion. For comparison, the Toronto Maple Leafs are the most valuable NHL team at $4.25 billion. The Hoffmann Family of Cos. has built its fortune by making prudent moves for undervalued assets while maintaining a long-term mindset of increasing their value. The family will join the running for best Chicago sports family owners…and can overtake Jerry Reinsdorf on day one. Crain’s presents the vital details of the pending transaction by the Winnetka-based Hoffmann Family.

🏈 Chicago State University to Add Football, Bringing Chicago Its Only NCAA Division I Program Even if the Bears hightail it out of town, at least Chicago State can fill some of the void. CSU wraps up 2025 with concrete plans to launch its football team shortly before Labor Day next year. Similar to Notre Dame, it will operate as an independent in its first season, then join the Northeast Conference in 2027. In this PSA from the Chicago Crusader, there's a bit of irony in featuring a quote from Bears’ president Kevin Warren supporting the school’s launch of its football program. Warren is responsible for causing holiday jitters among many across the city and state. He teased the possibility of the Bears doing the unthinkable and leaving Illinois for Indiana. Warren may be a prime candidate for the least favorite Chicago sports figure right now. Still, at least he supports adding to Chicago’s sports ecosystem, even if he helps disrupt it by orchestrating one leaving.

💰️ Five Sportsbooks Could Shut Down Chicago Sports Betting Over Budget Language Midnight on New Year’s Day could mean something completely different for sports betting operators than the customary champagne and fireworks. Instead of cheers and celebration, City Council and Mayor Johnson have been going back and forth about the 2026 city budget for months. Included in the budget is the controversial 10.25% tax on citywide online sports betting. It would add to the two previous tax increases that the state has levied on online sports betting operators. Once passed, the law would require city-level licenses for the largest sportsbook operators, such as DraftKings and FanDuel. Of course, it’s been met with heavy resistance and criticism from the Sports Betting Alliance, but also from state legislators. Last year’s tax bill, the second in as many years, has already resulted in a 15% reduction in total bets in September. Instead of adding revenue to Chicago’s tax base, the new law could severely hamper it if the sportsbooks pull out of the city completely. Legal Sports Report relays the latest news on Chicago’s sports betting tax.

🏫 New DePaul Sports Facility Approved By City Council DePaul has 42 million reasons to be grateful during the holidays. The Chicago City Council gave its stamp of approval to go along with the Plan Commission’s approval of the $42 million project. The new sports facility will replace century-old residential buildings. Despite plans to cut $27 million in spending overall, DePaul will begin construction on the sports facility after the current school year. DePaul’s view is that it’s vital to boost its recruiting efforts and remain competitive in the new landscape of college sports. The Big East team has to compete with the likes of Georgetown, Butler, and Villanova for recruits each year. Having just one more enticing bulletpoint to add to the pitch deck, like a new sports facility, could be all it takes to bring a five-star to Lincoln Park. Chicago Yimby presents renderings of the new facility and its features.

🏟️ Chiefs to Build New $3 Billion Stadium in Kansas The parallels of the Chiefs’ stadium situation are very similar to the Bears’, but with some stark differences. Both situations involve a bordering state seeking to capitalize on the opportunity to add an NFL team where none has existed before. Both want domed stadiums to host future Super Bowls. And both include large public subsidy packages that determine whether the project can succeed. But the biggest difference is that there was much more agreement on the political side of things for the Chiefs than there is in Chicago. Both Missouri and Kansas politicians were more than eager to offer the Chiefs subsidies to build a stadium. Ultimately, the Chiefs went with Kansas’ proposal. Its proposal excludes a public vote on public funding and will issue bonds covering 60% of the total costs. The Bears are facing a situation in which they are asking Illinois for public subsidies, but their requests are falling on deaf ears. The mayor of Kansas City, MO had to make a solemn statement after learning they will lose the Chiefs and all the benefits that come with them. Unless prepared to make a similar announcement in a defeated tone, Illinois and Chicago should rethink their strategy before pushing the Bears away across the border. Here are more details on the cost of the Chiefs’ project and when a domed stadium would open.

🏅 LA's Olympic gamble The City of Angels is providing the soft landing of angel’s wings as a failsafe for any cost overruns for the 2028 Olympics. Historically, hosting the Olympics brings a sense of pride to a host country and the city it’s hosted in. But…that doesn’t cover the laundry list of expenses. Venue infrastructure is usually the most expensive, with people management and operations expenses also showing up big on the expense sheet. The last time LA hosted the Olympics, in 1984, it did turn a profit, though that is rare. To secure the bid to host in 2028, the city of LA pledged to cover the first $270 million in potential cost overruns. California taxpayers will cover the next $270 million, and then LA taxpayers will be responsible for any additional overruns. It’s not quite financial russian roulette, but considering the track record of recent Olympics (e.g., the 2021 Tokyo Olympics cost $13 billion, with taxpayers on the hook for about 60% of it), it might as well be. The planning committee for the Olympic Games sounds confident it can keep costs in check, but nothing is guaranteed until the torch is lit. LAist details the expected revenue and expenses for LA2028.

🏈 Bay Area Super Bowl shaping up to be bigger and costlier than ever The 2016 Bay Area that hosted Super Bowl 50 would’ve never been questioned about its ability to host two major sporting events in one calendar year. Its reputation has been soiled since then. San Francisco in particular became more known for its homeless problem and high-profile crime than as a world-renowned city. Based on the demand for game tickets, top-tier packages, and hotels for Super Bowl 60, it sounds like it has restored its glory. Tickets are pacing 15% higher than last year in New Orleans, top-tier packages are sold out, and 96,000 hotel rooms have been booked. The expectations are sky high this year with the addition of the Pro Bowl to the agenda. More star players = more potential brand activations and media appearances earlier in the week than usual. Pressure will be there for hospitality companies to top what they did last year, as it should be. With more capacity and supply to accommodate the number of people expected in town, the Bay will be expected to meet, if not exceed, expectations. Super Bowl week will surely set the tone for the World Cup matches it will host during the summer. Sports Business Journal reports on the various companies working together to make Super Bowl 60 unforgettable.

⚽️ US prosecutors seek to abandon soccer TV rights corruption case A decade after headline-grabbing corruption charges were brought against numerous executives affiliated with FIFA, prosecutors are throwing their hands up, ready to give up the fight. Hernan Lopez is one of those executives who was initially charged, then acquitted, then had his conviction reinstated, and could now be home free. A former Fox executive, Lopez was charged with accepting bribes to secure the Copa Libertadores, the South American club championship, for Fox. Overall, officials of multiple soccer federations were alleged to have received $150 million in bribes. Now that the federal government has reduced the number of Justice Dept prosecutors who could handle corruption cases like these, it seems likely that years of court will have gone to waste. Seems more wasteful than buying an ex a Christmas present. MSN discusses the change of heart and the full scope of the original charges.