Hi Bada! Magic City Not "Done" - Just Re-Branded & Moving... Posted on July 2, 2025 at 00:11:09 AM by Stu Neiman
I've actually missed you Bada (mostly serious). Actually its hard to call 20 performances 2 days a week x 10 weeks a "season," but that is what it is. It will be the last Parimutuel season we play at Magic City, but it will not be the last Parimutuel season (don't want to ruin the surprise but think back to Ft. Pierce 2010-2011 and the States fiscal year). But again you are focused on the wrong thing. Now let me attack......I mean address your heartfelt concerns for our program's wellbeing.
The "new casino owners" have never seemed either interested or not interested in Jai-Alai (they are on a very long list). Since the time of the sale we have continued to play under a lease agreement with an expiration of 12/31/25, in their facility and they have been nothing but gracious, frequently bringing new employees and VIP's into the fronton. But that does not mean they want to buy into it. We already know that the list of interested investors / partners / participants is small and niche in an ever changing gaming environment. If you or I were them, and were not pursuing a dream or passion project would you or I dedicate that square footage to a Jai-Alai enterprise or would you expand your slot / gaming footprint?
Now, as for us "lasting longer than you thought" (again, without ruining the surprise) our company has been called the World jai-Alai League / Battle Court Jai-Alai, llc for at least the last two years. And not to worry, though we've not announced our destination, I expect our Winter 2026 Battle Court Season to begin in the first quarter of 2026, less than 3 months from the Fall 2025 final. In terms of what is and is not "cost-effective" (thanks for the concern), nothing about Jai-Alai is "cost effective." Values are pretty much an absolute set by those footing the bill.
That brings us to everyone's favorite question - how are they doing financially? So the short answer is that I collect a paycheck every two weeks, I'm appreciative of it and the chance to continue working in Jai-Alai and its really not any of my business because its not my money. But I can say this; after 6 years I did ask about our income, primarily out of self preservation - how much longer could I expect those paychecks? I was given a number and (and this is sincere) and I was pleasantly surprised. We can all see the parimutuel number and we know how to net-that-out but I know that Battle Court teams have been sold and the sports betting apps advertised on our side wall ain't up there for free, so what do these other revenue sources generate? Again, private company and none of my business BUT we can see a path to potentially break even and potentially to achieve some profit in a timeframe which justifies the continued investment of those who do cover the difference. I chose those words very carefully so read that last sentence again - it says what it says and the number and the distance to break-even aren't up for public discussion.
I appreciate your opinion that "Dania is the only court that makes sense," but that is simply not accurate. Dania would be a pleasure and it would be great to work among friends in a familiar environment. So while I disagree that it is our only or even best option they have been very gracious.
The only place where I think you've taken leave of your senses is in your assertion that (paraphrasing) "year-round parimutuel Jai-Alai just needs to be marketed better." I do take you and others seriously (despite my bitchy tone which I really just do for fun - most people find me at least tolerable in person on the rare occasions when I do engage), but all the marketing dollars in the world could not revive the traditional Jai-Alai model. Its not possible to pay the players a living wage with legitimate prize incentives for more than 2 or 3 months with that model. Parimutuel Jai-Alai existed in a state of managed-decline for more than 20 years while awaiting competitive gaming products. I was there and we did a very good job, all things considered, maintaining a wonderful Jai-Alai product from '99 -to- 2014.
Your marketing argument last made sense in the late '90's & early 2000's. When it was billboards, cable television, newspaper and radio. We were everywhere and that was then. We even tried all of that in the beginning with Magic City (Covid obviously didn't help). But that ship has sailed. Dania does an excellent job, but trying to push that beyond 3 months, would not work for a profit seeking entity.
I will give you total credit for something that you did say about Sports / Fixed Odds Betting awhile back. You commented something along the lines of "there being many entities involved so the end number could not be much or worth the effort." Now, for the record, I do not get involved in that part of the business beyond announcing in a manner that Scott generally finds entertaining and making sure we adapt "Jai-Alai rules & play" to fit that product. I don't know the sports-book handles and don't need to. We provide content and a quality of broadcast distribution that is competitive and well received in that space. Its an odd marriage of the sport being played and the media that supports it. At a technical level (as in multiple HD cameras linked by fiber optics and operators to operate the stuff), what Scott & Lindsay have accomplished has never been done before and every platform has been impressed with our production, data and media and that is a whole other set of costs that the traditional model could not bear. But we are positioned to provide "content" to anyone, anywhere in the world with basically "a flip of the switch."
So no, we are by no means "done," and we are 8 years in. There is a place for parimutuel jai-Alai but it is limited. It used to be about how we draw people to the fronton and compete with other entertainment products. In today's world that challenge almost seems quaint. We are now after individuals, many of whom don't even want to leave their homes. They are content to watch and wager on their phones and maybe stream-us to their televisions while ordering multi-national, 5 star cuisine to eat in their living rooms. They are far less interested in how to pronounce a complex Basque surname, than they are with stats that, frankly were never really looked at in Jai-Alai before. But I digress - the take away, were here, back in September with World Super Court, Fall battle Court and yes, even a little parimutuel Jai-Alai and then, the big move!
I encourage you to rummage about the World Jai-Alai League website. They even have a blog (newish & fairly well hidden) dedicated to the history of Jai-Alai in the United States. I personally find it thoughtful and interesting 🙂. It lacks the first-person touch of Pelota Press, Say Hili and, of course, Tiger's board, but its another perspective among many perspectives in Jai-Alai.
