Transactions recognized below include ones involving the NFL, NBA, NHL, and MLS. The Corporate Presence has also designed custom awards for ESPN, Bally Sports, and the LPGA.

LIV-PGA Tombstone

Golf-themed crystal tombstone celebrating an agreement to end antitrust litigation between LIV Golf and the PGA. The agreement coincided with a merger announcement between the two parties. (23AZH136)

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Pickleball-Themed Crystal Deal Toy

Custom crystal deal toy commemorating a minority growth investment in West Des Moines, Iowa-based Smash Park. The company provides indoor/outdoor “eatertainment”, offering food, beverages, and recreational activities with an emphasis on pickleball. (23ALJ178)

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Crystal deal tombstone celebrating an investment in Smash Park by California-based private equity firm DCA Partners. In addition to pickleball, Smash Park venues offer activities such as axe-throwing, duckpin bowling, arcade games, and karaoke.

Santa Maria Golf Club Lucite Tombstone

Lucite tombstone celebrating the syndicated project financing for the Santa Maria Golf & Country Club in Panama. Participants in the syndication included Banco General, Banesco, BAC International de Costa Rica, and PRODUBANK.

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ESPN Crystal Leadership Award

Billie Jean King Youth Leadership Award presented to Joel Apudo at the 2020 ESPN Espy Awards ceremony. Apudo manages a youth soccer program in the West End neighborhood of Atlanta.

(20AKL184)
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Sports Ticket-Themed Deal Tombstone

Sports ticket-themed crystal deal tombstone marking the acquisition by Playfly Sports of the Aspire Sport Marketing Group. Based in Atlanta, Aspire provides ticket and hospitality sales and services, as well as strategic planning and analytics. (23AKL194)

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Crystal financial tombstone recognizing the acquisition of sports and entertainment marketing firm Aspire.

Princeton Football 150th Anniversary Commemorative

Lucite commemorative marking the 150th anniversary of Princeton football.

(9ALJ464)
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Canadian-American Deal Tombstone

Hockey-themed tombstone commemorating the Canadian-American partnership between Simon Property Group and Calloway Real Estate Investment. The deal involved an upscale outlet shopping center serving Toronto.

(5ARA624)
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ESPN Muhammad Ali Sports Humanitarian Award

Muhammad Ali Sports Humanitarian Award presented to Nelson Cruz of the Minnesota Twins at the 2020 ESPY’s.

(20AKL184)
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Basketball-Themed Deal Toy

Custom deal toy celebrating the acquisition of the NBA’s Utah Jazz. The deal for the franchise also included the team’s arena.

(20AKL540)
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Crystal deal tombstone commemorating the sale of the Utah Jazz, the Salt Lake City-based National Basketball Association franchise.

Sports Deal Toys

In the galleries beginning on this page, you’ll find over 90 images of deal toys and financial tombstones related to the sports industry, and to sports on the professional, college, and recreational levels. You’ll see transactions involving a number of highly recognizable leagues, teams, and companies in this space. These include organizations as varied as the Danish Superliga, the Ultimate Fighting Championships (UFC), and the National Hockey League. Also represented are individual professional teams such as the Los Angeles Dodgers, Utah Jazz, Columbus Crew, Houston Rockets, Sacramento Kings, and Denver Broncos.

But you’ll also see in these galleries deal toys involving less familiar transactions and names. These might include, for instance, the sale of Spanish golf resort; a capital raising for an Australian provider of wearable sports performance-tracking technology (used by teams ranging from Real Madrid to the Buffalo Bills); Series B funding for a Los Angeles-based eSports company; and the recapitalization of a chain of physical therapy and fitness clinics.

You’ll also find a number of recognition gifts and awards recognizing sports-related milestones and achievements. These include a commemorative marking the 150th anniversary of Princeton Football, and athletic achievement awards for other colleges such as University of California, Berkeley, and Stanford. You’ll also see prestigious annual honors such as ESPN’s Espy Awards (including the Muhammad Ali Humanitarian Award), and the National Football League Commissioner’s Awards.

Other milestones commemorated in these galleries include the successful negotiation of a collective bargaining agreement for a professional sports league, the formation of a joint-venture sports network, and the Super Bowl victory of the Philadelphia Eagles.

Finally, you’ll notice among the tombstone designs included here some transactions that do not relate to the sports industry but still have sports themes. These include a cricket-themed tombstone involving an Indian payments firm, a ping pong-themed deal toy involving London-area pubs, and a hockey rink-inspired design commemorating a real estate partnership involving U.S. and Canadian firms.