Sinclair Broadcast Group said it sold its controlling interest in Chicago sports network Stadium to Jerry Reinsdorf’s Silver Chalice. Reinsdorf is the owner of the Chicago White Sox of Major League Baseball and the Chicago Bulls of the National Basketball Association. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. Chalice has owned a stake in Stadium since it was started in 2017.
Sinclair Broadcast Group and Jerry Reinsdorf’s Stadium wants to be America’s biggest sports network. And it doesn’t want to be on cable. Stadium, which reaches some 25 million homes — the majority of them on free TV — is a bet on the future of broadcast television.
Sinclair Broadcast Group continues its expansion in the multicast network space with premium sports content.
Round-the-clock cable sports networks like ESPN and FS1 will soon have competition on over-the-air television in the form of a new joint venture spearheaded by Sinclair Broadcasting — Stadium — which launches Monday as a 24/7 digital offering before making its over-the-air debut Sept 6.
