New USOC IOC Deal Opens Doors to Olympic Bids

(ATR) The United States could be back in the bid business, thanks to the signing of a new revenue-sharing agreement between the USOC and IOC that will help smooth over the cracks in international relationships the past few years.

"This is a very happy moment for the IOC," IOC President Jacques Rogge said at SportAccord in Quebec City, "but I believe also for the USOC as this agreement will definitely strengthen both sides. The IOC will be in a position to better function; the USOC will enhance its possibilities of having a leading role in sport in the world."

USOC chairman Larry Probst called the deal, which will run from 2020 to 2040, "a terrific arrangement" for both the IOC and the USOC and a "great outcome for the Olympic Movement around the world."

He added, "We’ve done a good job protecting the financial well-being of our organization."

Scott Blackmun, CEO of the USOC, told Around the Rings that the deal was "a very fair agreement for both sides. At the end of the day we are giving up revenues that we would otherwise have gotten… because it’s the right thing to do."

ASOIF president Denis Oswald, who had been a critic of the existing deal, told ATR, "It’s a good step forward, maybe not as good as we expected, but I think it’s important to close the case and reestablish a real good relationship. We need the USOC in the family and normal good relations with them."

The bad blood between the USOC and Olympic stakeholders who believed the United States was receiving too much revenue at their expense – particularly the international federations -- contributed to early exits for U.S. bids from New York in 2012 and Chicago in 2016. The USOC had vowed not to bid again until the revenue-sharing agreement was completed.

"We hope that this has removed a roadblock from a successful bid for the U.S.," said Probst, who said the USOC board of directors would meet in the San Francisco area next month and discuss a bid strategy that could include 2022 or 2024.

Neither side would disclose details of the deal, but sources familiar with the negotiations confirmed to ATR the terms first reported by The Associated Press, citing anonymous sources.

These new terms will take effect in 2020. The USOC would keep the revenue it currently receives from the current broadcast and sponsorship deals as a minimum, but any growth would be trimmed to 7 percent for U.S. broadcast rights and 10 percent for global sponsorships. The current shares are 12.75 percent (broadcast) and 20 percent (sponsorships).

In a deal struck last year between NBC/Universal and the IOC, the rights fee is $963 million for 2018 and 1.418 billion for 2020, which gives the U.S. a share of about $303 million.

The USOC would also pay $15 million for Games-related administrative costs until 2015 and $20 million after 2020, which was "a sticking point," said IOC finance chairman Richard Carrion.

Carrion said one section of the deal had to do with "some legal and philosophical issues and I think we bridged those pretty well." The previous U.S. deal had been open-ended, but this one will expire in 2040.

"There’s been a series of procedural issues in which the existing agreements were somewhat vague and unclear, and those were cleared up," he added.

He said those had to do with the procedure and involvement of the USOC in broadcast rights negotiations and the release of footage. Olympic rights and trademarks are also thought to be involved.

Carrion said the IOC executive board was unanimous in approving the deal and details have been shared with representative of the international federations and the national Olympic committees.

Rogge said the first discussions were held at SportAccord in Berlin in 2005, and Probst got involved at SportAccord in Denver in 2009. Talks began in earnest last year. Christophe De Kepper, IOC Director General, and Scott Blackmun, CEO of the USOC, "did the lion’s share of the work the last month or so," Probst said, "almost nonstop in person, via email or on the phone."

Blackmun told ATR that by agreeing to take a smaller share of the growth in revenues, "I think we’re saying that we want to be sensitive to the fact that we need to grow sport around the world. We have been very successful with our team, we want to continue to be able to support our athletes, but I think we also recognize the importance of athletes around the world getting the opportunity to compete to the best of their ability."

Several U.S. cities are interested in the 2022 Winter Olympics, but the 2024 Summer Games are an attractive option as well. The U.S. last hosted the Summer Games in 1996 in Atlanta and the Winter Games in 2002 in Salt Lake City, which has expressed interest in 2022 along with Denver, Reno-Lake Tahoe and Bozeman, Montana.

Dallas and Los Angeles have expressed interest in 2024.

Written by Karen Rosen.