Golden Knights Owner Bill Foley's Pitch To Bring An NBA Team To Las Vegas

Yeah, good to be here. Thank you.

Well, Commissioner, we believe we're really well positioned to bring Vegas to the next level. We're all about community, about bringing the community involved in our teams. The Golden Knights are Vegas born. We're proud of that. We have had sellouts in every game for the last nine years, including playoffs. We are totally dedicated to our local community. When we did our initial work to sell season tickets, we made sure that we included firefighters, policemen, all the first responders, nurses, doctors, lawyers, paralegals, and we priced our ticketing so that everyone could afford to go to a game, and frankly, it's worked. We are Vegas born. We've also created an infrastructure that we believe is really useful for an NBA team when they come to Las Vegas. We basically have an entire business organization, and the idea is that we have the base. We have to add to the base. The NBA is a different animal and requires a different level of intensity. But we believe that Vegas is ready for an NBA team, and we also believe that our group is the right group to get that ownership opportunity. We also own part of T-Mobile Arena, and it's really the only place that the team can play initially. Maybe there's another stadium, a new stadium in the works at some point. But for the first several years, we need to have a good place to play, and we're prepared also to improve T-Mobile to make it NBA ready.

No, we actually thought that NBA would be a natural for Vegas, assuming the Golden Knights were successful, and we've had a very successful run in terms of ownership and success on the ice and success with the community, but we always felt that the NBA should come to Las Vegas, and if it did come to Las Vegas, we wanted to be prepared to help them be successful. And we've been planning for this for really nine years. And I also completely rebuilt my front office organization over the last 12 months to ensure that we have the right people in the right spots to drive a successful integration of the NBA franchise.

Well, our philosophy of the Golden Knights from day one is it's really a almost a military organization. It's based upon team first, not individuals, and we have developed a structure and an organization and a culture that's all about the team and about playing together as a team. So the entire hockey front office staff, the entire hockey organization, recognizes that it's about the team. It's not about the individual, and I believe I can bring that same philosophy and attitude to an NBA franchise. In fact, I'm sure of it.

I know that it's going to be expensive, and we will be competitive in terms of the level of franchise fee that we're able to pay, and we're putting together a very strong organization and group of individuals who will recognize the amount of money that it's going to take to be successful, but it's not always just about the money. Sometimes it's also about the organization, the touch points to the community, to the local youth, and when it comes to that, then we really know that we're the right group to get this franchise for obvious strategic reasons.

You know, I don't know. I guess we have to let it play out and see what the market shows the league is available and people are willing to pay. We know that it's going to be a combination of not just franchise fee. It's developing a front office that works. It's building a world class practice facility, and we do have a site in mind for the practice facility, which is also where we probably put our NHL practice facility. So we checked a lot of boxes, and we'll be competitive in terms of the bidding process. But I just don't know where that's going to lead.

Well, right now there are 124, not including MLS, major sports franchises in the United States, and there's a lot of demand for those franchises, and so the appreciation and the value of the franchise will be significant. We've never thought about how much money we can make each year. It's more about developing a team and a franchise that's good for the long run and that will be responsive and involved with the community and the youth in the community. So we're confident that these franchise values will continue to appreciate. And the people I'm getting involved with understand that as well. And they understand it's not about how much money you make in 2028 or 2029. It's really about the long term value creation prospect.

You know, honestly, I don't have an opinion on that. I know that in terms of our NHL franchise, we're very cognizant. Our players are cognizant of not betting on the team or really being involved in gambling. So, you know, we'll create a good team and a good structure and a good culture, and I'm sure that there'll be no problems with regards to sports betting with the Las Vegas franchise.

Well, I think there is a positive valuation on our football clubs in Europe, and we have four different football clubs, one in League One, one in the Premier League in Portugal, obviously AFC Bournemouth in the Premier League, and Auckland FC down in New Zealand, and we're continuing to look at other investment opportunities, and the appreciation in those teams is similar to what's going on in the United States. It's a limited universe of teams that are available, and we're thrilled that we're involved in the Premier League and we've been successful with AFC Bournemouth playing in Europe for the first time in 127 years this year. We're proud of that accomplishment.

Well, the synergies really come in terms of sponsorship and being able to get people involved on different teams at different levels. From a sponsorship standpoint, the knowledge base that we have from the Golden Knights and our ticketing situation in Bournemouth and our other teams is also transferable. Our knowledge about media rights and the way to engage with the media is also transferable. So there are lots of commonalities that we've found in the different sports teams, and you know sports is fun. What can I say? I'm trying to just get involved in sports and entertainment assets because it's fun. There's nothing like watching a football game or a hockey game or a basketball game and having an interest in that team that's playing. Stressful but fun.

Well, I can use the Golden Knights as a reference. I have an office at the practice facility. I go to all the scouting meetings, pro and amateur. I normally have lunch with the players. I know all the players personally. I know their wives, their families. I'm engaged, and I'm engaged with our general manager and our president of hockey operations. I intend to be the same owner with our basketball players. I want to make sure they know that we will do everything we can to make their life easy, so they can do one thing, and that's play basketball and win. We are all about winning. It's always advance, never retreat.

They've given us a general outline of the timeline, and the league has told us that they would like to grant zero franchises, one franchise, or two franchises by year end, and so they're going through a process of vetting the various groups that are coming forward, and we're in the process now of preparing our decks and our presentation to the league, and we hope to have that completed prior to July 15. That's our first step, and hopefully they'll give us a nod and say yes, you're one of the groups that we're interested in continuing to talk to, and we'll go forward and continue to do our very best to win this franchise.

Well, I believe that really in terms of local media, we're over the air with Scripps for our hockey games, and we're also over the air now for hockey, and also over the air in Phoenix, also hooked up with Scripps. So there's going to be an opportunity to combine these assets together and sell it as a package, and we'll see what our territory is going to be. But I know that we can be successful locally with our broadcast, with our media situation, and of course, we'll be involved in a national media situation with the NBA, just as we are with the NHL.

You know, we'll go through a process with our advisors and develop a really exciting name that also is a name somehow associated with the warrior class. That's why we like the knights, the Golden Knights, and we have the Nighthawks, our indoor football league team. We have the Silver Knights, our AHL team. I'm not saying a knight would be in the name, but I'm a real believer in creating an atmosphere and a situation among the players and the fans that they have a team they can root for. This part of the warrior class that never gives up and never gives in.

You know, I'm not. I'm really not concerned about that. Hockey and basketball have two different fan bases. That's initially my reaction. But the reality is, when we got the Golden Knights franchise, Las Vegas had about 1.7, 1.8 million people in the metro area. Today it's 2.4. You know, in six or seven years, it's going to be 3.4. Plus, Vegas is fortunate that it has roughly 42 or 43 million visitors a year that come to Vegas, and they come for entertainment now, not just gambling. They come for shows. They come to see sports teams play, so I'm not concerned at all. The NBA is such a multifaceted franchise or group of franchises, and so international that we will have no problem filling that arena.

You know, I'm going to start doing that. I haven't done it yet, but I do know several owners that own both clubs, both teams, and a lot of them play in the same arena, which is interesting. So you really get more dates that you're busy. So it really helps your naming rights, helps your sponsorship, helps PSL sales. So it all works together. But no, I do intend to talk to a number of different owners that own both teams. I do know several of them, but I haven't reached out yet. I'm trying to be very respectful of the process, and I want to make sure that any time I talk to anybody, I clear it with the league first.

Yeah. Hope to keep my fingers crossed. Hope I come back and have a nice chat with you.