Panthers covered $99M in losses; bankruptcy risk without county help: Report
The Florida Panthers are negotiating with Broward County as we speak, asking for tax dollars to cover losses and stabilize the franchise.
A report by Stifel, Nicolous and Barrett Sports Group, via Forbes, brings to light just how much the Panthers need that extra financial support. It states that Panthers ownership has had “substantial operating losses” and indicated “capital calls” of $99.3 million as of June.
Furthermore, the report finds that if the county declines to agree to the new deal with the Panthers, it “could lead to Panthers bankruptcy” which “could provide opportunity for team relocation.”
The proposed amendment with the county would commit $86 million to the team from 2015-16 through 2027-28. There would be $44 million of it paid out in the first four seasons; it drops to $2 million over the last three seasons. (Who drew this up, Ilya Kovalchuk?) The Panthers have an annual lease termination option after Year 8 of the deal, which is the 2022-23 season. The CBA expires after the 2021-22 season, by the way.
In an interview with Puck Daddy, Panthers COO Peter Luukko said there is a path to profitability for the team.
“If we can get some relief there and as we increase our sponsorship, or season ticket sales and in a few years our concessions contract and our TV deal are up it’ll give us that opportunity to get to where we need to be,” Luukko said. “Our projections to be sustainable are really – all we need to do is to get to the middle of the pack of the NHL. If we can get into that 13-16 team type revenues, we’ll be in great shape. That’s what makes me incredibly optimistic.”
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