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These days, sports are as much about entertainment as they are about competition. Leagues like Banana Ball have found success by turning the game into a spectacle, placing less emphasis on the final score and more on ensuring fans leave smiling.
“I’d say if you’re in this industry and you’re not looking at what Jesse Cole has created, you’re insane,” Diamond Baseball Holdings (DBH) CEO Peter Freund tells Entrepreneur. But that approach isn’t realistic for every league. In most major professional sports, revenue is tied — at least in part — to winning. But in the minor leagues, the equation is different.
“We don’t measure success by a winning streak,” says Freund. “We measure it based on the fan experience.”
The business Of happiness
DBH owns and operates 48 Minor League Baseball clubs, giving it control of more professional sports teams than any other organization in the world. Freund’s job isn’t to win championships or chase records; it’s to bring new fans through the gates and keep them coming back.
“Ultimately, the happy fan who’s leaving may not care if their home team lost,” he says. “It’s about the lines being manageable, being greeted at the entrance and having an experience that feels unique to them.”
Even the general manager of the Brooklyn Cyclones, Steve Cohen — not to be confused with New York Mets owner Steve Cohen — admits the minors are a different ballgame.
“I have nothing to do with the players,” he says. “Whereas at the major league level, that’s what the GM does.”
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